Hydrocarbon leak led to Martinez Refining Company fire NBC Bay Area [Video]

A hydrocarbon material leak at the Martinez Refining Company caused a fire that injured six individuals and triggered a health advisory on Saturday, refinery personnel confirm.

According to Martinez Refining Company, two workers were conducting planned maintenance on one of the refinery’s process units around 1:30 p.m. on Saturday before noticing the leak that then caught fire.

“The workers immediately evacuated the area, and the material subsequently caught fire… The fire then spread within the immediate vicinity,” MRC said in a post on Facebook.

Refinery officials then informed the county of the fire that broke out during flaring at 1:49 p.m., Contra Costa Health said

Flaring is the burning of excess gas that occurs during equipment shutdowns or malfunctions.

“To manage the response, MRC, ConFire, and the Martinez Police Department formed a Unified Command, which allows multiple agencies and organizations to effectively work together,” MRC said. “By approximately 8:30 p.m., …