Skip to content

Cherry Point refinery reports no injuries after fire breaks out

Roughly an hour after it was first reported the fire at BP's Cherry Point refinery, near Ferndale, Wash., is reportedly under control as fire crews from the site and neighbouring counties work to put it out.

Roughly an hour after it was first reported the fire at BP's Cherry Point refinery, near Ferndale, Wash., is reportedly under control as fire crews from the site and neighbouring counties work to put it out.

A storage unit tower on the south side of the refinery was reported to be billowing heavy black smoke around 2:25 p.m. according to Whatcom County fire officials.

Fire Chief Bill Hewett of Whatcom County Fire District 8 told The Vancouver Sun that as of about 3:45 p.m. BP staff and about 20 firefighters from several different counties "appeared to have things under control."

"Fire District 7 and the Cherry Point crew do work together and routinely train together for an emergency like this," Hewett said.

BP spokesman Scott Dean said all employees and contractors have been accounted for and there were no reported injuries at the refinery.

It is unknown what started the fire.

The refinery - the state's biggest and one that can produce up to 230,000 barrels of fuel a day - is about 20 km south of the border and Semiahmoo Bay, on which White Rock's beach sits.

It is the third-largest refinery on the West Coast and employs more than 700 fulltime employees and 500 contractors.

BP claims the refinery produces 2.5 million gallons of jet fuel, 3.5 million gallons of gasoline, 2.2 million gallons of diesel, 360,000 gallons of butane and 140,000 gallons of propane every day.

The Cherry Point refinery has been a focus in Richmond lately in relation to the Vancouver Airport Fuel Facilities Corporations (VAFFC) bid to build a pipeline through the city to the airport.

VAPOR, a local environmental group that opposes the pipeline proposal, has lobbied instead for transporting fuel from the Cherry Point refinery.

More to come . . .

mhager@postmedia.com

http://www.twitter.com/MikePHager

Click here to see more on Vancouver Sun.