When Refinery Workers Suffer, Our Team Demands the Answers They Need
Plant and refinery accidents tend to make headlines. When they happen, they are often destructive and dangerous to the people in around them. Workers and their families are often left wondering what they should do next. The effects of these accidents stay with victims and survivors longer than the news cycle covers them, and they deserve help rebuilding what was destroyed.
Flint Hills Resources Corpus Christi East Refinery
Magellan Corpus Christi Refinery
Buckeye Corpus Christi Refinery
At Arnold & Itkin LLP, our team of Corpus Christi plant and refinery accident lawyers remain dedicated to workers long after the headlines stop talking about them. Our mission is to demand answers, obtain justice, and secure the compensation that people deserve after having their lives turned upside down by negligence. Our dedication to results has resulted in billions of dollars recovered for clients. We’ve taken on the largest energy companies in the world, and we’ve won results facing them by never backing down from a fight.
Our Corpus Christi refinery accident attorneys are standing by to provide a free and confidential consultation. Contact us at (888) 493-1629 to find out more about how we can help.
Plant & Refinery Accident Lawyers Serving Corpus Christi
Refineries are one of the most important parts of Corpus Christi’s economy. As a major crude oil refinery hub, the Port of Corpus Christi is the location of six refineries.
Corpus Christi plants and refineries produce products such as:
Crude oil
Gasoline
Diesel
Fuel oil
Naphtha
Jet fuel
Refinery accidents are notable because they are usually very destructive and cause significant harm to workers. Whether an explosion causes serious injuries or toxic exposure triggers health complications for workers, they are entitled to protection from these incidents. A good number of oil refinery accidents happen during shutdowns and turnarounds, when a refinery is taken offline to perform maintenance, updates, or renewals. These processes can be extremely complicated and must be handled precisely to avoid harmful incidents. What's worse, however, is when oil and gas companies delay turnarounds because they don't want to stop production. This can dramatically increase the likelihood of a refinery accident, as equipment is not updated or inspected.
Besides being the right thing to do, preventing these accidents is a legal requirement for owners and operators of plants and refineries. In the 1970s, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was created to help stop worker deaths in the United States. While OSHA has helped make workplaces significantly safer, it can’t keep up with conditions across the millions of different American worksites. When companies fail to do the right thing on their own, they should be held accountable for failing workers and the laws designed to save their lives.
Corpus Christi Plant Explosion Lawyers
Plant explosions are catastrophic by definition. They change lives forever, either by inflicting life-altering injuries on workers or creating a lifetime of grief for loved ones after a fatal incident. The fallout of a plant accident, either environmentally or emotionally, can leave lifelong scars. Companies should do everything they can to prevent refinery explosions; instead, they create unnecessary risks in the name of keeping costs low.
As Corpus Christi plant injury lawyers, we've investigated numerous industrial disasters—some of the worst ones in U.S. history. Every time, we are grieved to learn that the injuries and loss of life created by these accidents are preventable. One case we investigated could have been fixed in a few minutes for a few dollars. The only reason it wasn't implemented? Because the easy solution would have slowed down production. That's unacceptable in the industrial world, but in the real world, it's loss of life that's unacceptable.
Oil Refinery Explosions in Corpus Christi, TX
Corpus Christi oil refineries play an essential role in American industry. They are responsible for processing crude oil, transforming and refining it into products like gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel, petroleum gas, and more. However, because they deal with volatile substances, they are sometimes the sites of catastrophic explosions.
An oil refinery explosion can level an entire facility, destroying everyone and anything in its path. Workers who aren't injured in the initial blast may be harmed or even killed while trying to escape the refinery. Evacuation injuries are common, as workers frantically try to get out of harm's way. Severe burns, crush and impact injuries, and psychological trauma are other serious consequences of oil refinery explosions. In these cases, workers need the best Corpus Christi oil refinery accident attorneys they can get. At Arnold & Itkin, we strive day in and day out to help injured refinery workers and their families rebuild after these tragic (and often preventable) accidents.
Why Do Plant & Refinery Accidents Happen?
Our Corpus Christi plant explosion attorneys have investigated the cases for hundreds of plant workers; often, when they get hurt, it's because someone decided cheap production was more important than people's lives. It's why decades-old plants have neglected equipment, untrained workers, and poor emergency preparation.
Our Corpus Christi plant injury lawyers ensure our workers get what they need to move forward:
$97 Million – Our Corpus Christi plant burn attorneys won a massive settlement for refinery accident survivors who were burned in a fire. The settlement helped them pay for the wages they lost while recovering and for the extensive medical care they needed.
$39.7 Million – Our plant explosion lawyers obtained a massive verdict for an explosion survivor working at a plywood plant. The client's skin was falling apart due to the incident, which required numerous surgeries and would require more in the future. The verdict helped him pay for those surgeries and provide for his basic needs during recovery.
$15.45 Million– We won a massive verdict for four workers who were injured in the 2013 plant explosion in Geismar. Williams Olefins attempted to limit their workers' claims by passing the blame, but the jury saw through their act. The company was assigned 98% of the blame for the explosion.
$18.5 Million– In the second Geismar plant explosion trial, we held both Williams Olefins and SABIC accountable for their negligence. SABIC is a worldwide petrochemical company with a 16% stake in the Louisiana plant. This verdict is what forced the company to take its workers' claims seriously.
The Long-Term Effect of Plant Explosion Injuries
Explosions are violent, fiery, and traumatic, resulting in physical and psychological injuries. Physically, the shockwave of an explosion can cause serious blunt force injuries. The heat and fire cause severe burn injuries, potentially requiring skin grafts or amputation. We have also represented workers with orthopedic damage, including injuries to the neck and back, who were hurt while running away from an explosion.
The long-term effects of these injuries are numerous:
Inability to make a living
Scarring and disfigurement
Chronic or constant pain
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Physical pain and suffering
Emotional and mental anguish
All of these injuries, even the emotional ones, have a financial impact. People with traumatic stress may not be able to return to their job or have to find a different career. The loss of a job compounds the medical costs that come with an injury, putting families at serious risk of losing everything they've worked hard to save.
Helping After Catastrophic Pipeline Explosions in Corpus Christi
When it comes to America's energy infrastructure, there are few methods of transportation as efficient, cost-effective, and fast as pipelines. There are millions of miles of pipeline throughout the U.S. taking natural gas, oil, and other resources where they're needed. Since 1960, the mileage of gas pipelines has nearly tripled, and the mileage of oil pipelines has nearly doubled since 2001. However, there's a problem with that.
Companies that own or lease these pipelines are responsible for ensuring they're safe. However, in many cases, companies will spend as little time, labor, and equipment to meet the bare minimum of safety requirements. That means stretches of aging, leaking pipes aren't getting the attention they need, which inevitably leads to pipeline failure. When these pipeline failures injure workers, companies need to be held accountable.
THE CONSEQUENCES OF PIPELINE FAILURE
Most of the oil pipelines in the world run through Texas, as we're the state with the bulk of the nation's oilfields. Data suggests that pipeline failures will inevitably become more common if we don't invest massive resources into updating and maintaining the millions of miles of pipeline we've built. History seems to confirm the data. The most common pipeline accidents occur in Texas and Louisiana, harming numerous workers every year.
Countless workers in Texas and Louisiana will suffer life-changing injuries in the future if we don't hold companies accountable for the harm they're causing today. Our Corpus Christi pipeline explosion lawyers believe it's our duty to stand up for injured workers and ensure they have the money they need. Our law firm has won billions of dollars for people injured in some of the worst industrial and maritime disasters in the nation's history. If you've been injured, speak with our Corpus Christi pipeline explosion lawyers today.
THE ORION GROUP PIPELINE EXPLOSION IN CORPUS CHRISTI
In August 2020, a dredging operation in the Corpus Christi Ship Channel hit a propane pipeline, which ignited a fire that destroyed the dredge vessel and spread to a grain elevator nearby. The vessel, the Waymon L Boyd, was owned by Orion Marine Group and was working on a private project for a client.
Eight workers were injured at the scene, and four more were initially reported missing before their bodies were recovered days later. Six injured workers were taken to local hospitals and burn units, including Corpus Christi Medical Center-Bay Area and Christus Spohn Hospital Shoreline. CEO of Orion Marine Group, Mark Stauffer, said the workers were "part of the Orion team for many years." Meanwhile, it's still unclear why Orion's vessel struck the pipeline in the first place. Determining the cause of an accident like this one is vital to ensuring the long-term recovery of the victims' families. By understanding what caused the accident, we can hold the right people accountable and ensure this never happens again. Just as importantly, we can make sure those left behind or those recovering from their injuries get the compensation they need to rebuild their lives.
What Plant Accident Survivors Say About Arnold & Itkin
Our firm has one goal for every case: make sure our clients get enough money to provide for their basic needs, stabilize their life, and get back to normal. That includes money to replace their wages, pay off their medical debt, and pay for future earnings and treatment. Every verdict or settlement we secure for our clients represents a life that's been made whole. Because we're working on behalf of your family and the rest of your life, we make every effort to hold your wrongdoers accountable. Here's how one client put it:
“It was just unreal how tirelessly they worked. Our trial lasted around 10 days. Every night, they were working ‘til way after midnight. There were a couple nights they never even slept.” - Terry, Client of Arnold & Itkin
"They're fighting for these little people that can’t handle themselves when a giant comes. Almost like the David and Goliath. It’s amazing thing to see. I would recommend them to anybody, I mean anybody.” - Shawn Thomas
"They let me know when I met them that everything was going be all right. Ever since the day I met them until today that I'm sitting here, they have always had my back.” - Veronica Sowell
"They didn't back down. That's why I like my lawyers. Even when I had to do my testimony in court, they didn't let those lawyers run over me. They fought hard. You have some lions with Arnold & Itkin." - Maurice Dilworth
Injuries Caused by Corpus Christi Plant & Refinery Accidents
Injuries caused by plant accidents are notable because they’re completely preventable, often serious, and have the potential to change the rest of a worker’s life. Safety must be paramount during the operations of a plant or refinery. Volatile substances, dangerous equipment, and dozens of workers on site at any given time make these locations especially prone to injury-causing incidents.
Plant and refinery accident injuries may include:
Burn injuries
Blunt force trauma
Crush injuries
Falls
Neck and back injuries
Spinal cord injuries
Vision loss
Acoustic trauma
Amputation
Brain injuries
Besides being an excruciating experience, the repercussions of these injuries last for years if not a lifetime. Workers often lose money to medical care, suffer from lost wages, and find it difficult to get back to work because of the lasting issues caused by injuries. Since accidents are usually the result of negligence, those who cause them should be held accountable for helping those suffering from them.
Wrongful Death Caused by Plant & Refinery Accidents
The death of a loved one is an indescribable loss. When plant workers die in accidents, their loved ones bear the cost of it—emotionally, financially, and psychologically. Our firm fights to ensure the impact of wrongful death is mitigated by the company that allowed it to happen. With many plant workers serving as the sole providers for their families, our work helps ensure our clients can put food on the table and keep their homes.
Wrongful death suits fight for economic and non-economic losses, including:
Funeral and medical costs
Loss of companionship
Loss of parental care
Loss of income and benefits
Emotional pain and suffering
Punitive damages
Serious Texas Plant & Refinery Accidents
Texas’ history is dotted with significant plant and refinery accidents. In fact, the worst industrial accident in the nation’s history occurred in 1947 at Galveston Bay. On April 26, a ship carrying ammonium nitrate, a highly explosive substance, exploded in the harbor. What resulted was one of history’s largest non-nuclear explosions. The incident killed between 400 and 600 people and injured up to 4,000 more. Despite this historic accident, the follow decades found many more Texas plants and refineries having significant and preventable accidents.
Some of the most notable recent Texas plant and refinery accidents include:
Phillips Petroleum Company Plant: In October of 1989, a series of explosions were triggered by an ethylene leak at the Phillips petroleum Company in Pasadena, TX. The leak was caused by an improperly turned valve that caused 85,000 pounds of gas to fill the plant. The resulting explosion had the power of two-and-a-half tons of dynamite and killed 23 people. No gas detectors or warning systems were installed to protect workers.
BP Texas City Refinery: In 2005, Texas City had its second major industrial accident. Pipes at the aging Texas City Refinery leaked a hydrocarbon vapor cloud. The massive explosion it triggered killed 15 workers and injured 170 more. Notably, refinery managers and owners neglected to update the aging plant despite multiple warnings. Our Corpus Christi refinery accident lawyers represented several of the workers injured in this explosion.
West Fertilizer Company: In April of 2013, an explosion rocked a fertilizer storage and distribution center in West, TX. The incident injured over 250 people and killed 15 others. The blast was triggered by the ignition of ammonium nitrate, the same substance that caused the Texas City Disaster in 1947. While investigators said the fire was deliberately set, many disagree with this finding and claim that this conclusion was only reached after they couldn’t find the source of the explosion’s ignition.
Corpus Christi Dredge Accident: On August 21, 2020, a dredging vessel managed to hit a pipeline in the Corpus Christi refinery district. The accident killed four workers and sent six others to the hospital. Initial reports indicate that the pipeline was not clearly marked and that there was inadequate planning that would have prevented the dredge from contacting the pipe.
Corpus Christi Magellan Fire: On the morning of December 5, 2020, a fire broke out in a tank at the Magellan petroleum storage facility in Corpus Christi. The incident occurred as contractors worked to clean a 1,300-barrel tank. The incident sent seven people to the hospital, with four of them sustaining critical injuries. At least one of the injured individuals required treatment at a San Antonio burn unit.
Call Our Corpus Christi Plant & Refinery Accident Firm at (888) 493-1629
When you call Arnold & Itkin LLP, you aren’t just calling another Texas personal injury firm. Instead, you’re calling the team that injured workers have turned to over and over for the results they need. We’ve secured billions of dollars for our clients and have earned many landmark results against plant and refinery owners. We know the difficulties you’re facing, we know you need a strong advocate, and we’re ready to make a difference for you.
When you call us, you’re turning to a firm that never settles for less. While we can’t guarantee results, we can promise that we’ll be ready every step of the way. When the other side lies, we’ll conduct a thorough investigation. If the other side isn’t fair, we won’t back down from accountability. And if the other side tries to intimidate you, we’ll draw a line in the sand. Call us today to find out how we can help.
We’re standing by to talk right now at (888) 493-1629. Your consultation is free and always confidential.
Every plant and refinery accident is different. However, they always involve one critical factor: negligence. Ultimately, companies are responsible for making sure workers aren’t injured or killed. When an accident happens, it’s almost always because companies cut corners with safety and failed to prevent them.
What Can I Get with the Help of a Corpus Christi Refinery Accident Lawyer?
A lawyer will be focused on working to help you recover as much as possible after a plant or refinery accident. They’ll investigate what happened and work out how much money you’ll need to cover the costs of past, present, and future care. They’ll also work to help you receive compensation for things such as lost wages, lost earning capacity, and pain and suffering. While nothing guarantees a result, having the help of a lawyer means having an advocate who is fighting to hold the parties who harmed you accountable.
How Much Is Hiring a Corpus Christi Plant Accident Attorney?
Turning to our team comes with no financial risk to you. We work on something called a contingency fee. This means we cover all costs of a case—from court fees to investigative costs—to make sure you have no financial pressure as we work toward results. We’ll only collect a fee if we win your case. Working this way shows we’re committed to the best results and making our services available to clients from all economic backgrounds.
