Fire at Marathon Petroleum's Galveston Bay Refinery

A fire erupted at approximately 9:30 am on Monday, May 15th at Marathon Petroleum's Galveston Bay refinery (GBR) in Texas City.

While the blaze was reported as under control just before noon local time, it is currently unclear where the fire originated. At least one refinery worker has died as a result of the incident; no other injuries have been reported at this time.

Located just off the entrance to the Houston Ship Channel, the Galveston Bay refinery merged with Marathon Petroleum’s former Texas City refinery in 2018, therefore becoming the second-largest refinery in Texas.

The Marathon Petroleum facility has a history of dangerous incidents like this one. Earlier this year in January 2023, an oil spill at the site caused an odor in Texas City. In October 2021, local roads were closed in response to a crude oil leak caused by a faulty storage tank within the refinery. In January 2016, three employees were burned when a unit down for planned maintenance caught fire in the middle of the night.

Our hearts go out to the family of the worker who lost their life in this tragic incident. Our plant accident attorneys will continue to monitor this situation closely as further details emerge.