REGINA – A vice-president with a company that runs a refinery in Regina says a short-lived fire in a coker unit won’t affect the supply of diesel or gasoline to consumers.
Vic Huard (HYOO’-ahrd), vice-president of corporate affairs, also says the blaze at the Federated Co-op facility shouldn’t affect the refinery’s operations.
He says he’s just relieved no one was injured in the fire that was put out in less than an hour.
Huard says the cause and amount of damage are still being investigated.
Early social media reports suggested an explosion triggered flames that shot about 20 metres into the air.
It’s the third fire in about 16 months at the refinery.
In October 2011, corrosion in a pipe triggered a fireball that sent seven contract workers to hospital and forced 1,400 workers from the facility.
Last May, a much smaller fire occurred when an overheated crude oil pump ignited. There were no injuries.
Huard suggested that the fires are “relatively minor … in a complex of this scope.”
“As far as putting people’s minds at ease, there was never at any moment in this fire, or the one in May, or even the one in October 2011 where the public was in danger.”
(CKRM)
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