Valve failure causes flash fire at Mathura refinery, officials confirm – India TV

A day after a massive fire at the Indian Oil Corporation’s refinery in Mathura left eight people injured, a senior official on Wednesday (November 13) elaborated on the details of how the fire broke out. According to the information released by Renu Pathak, a senior manager at the refinery’s corporate communications department, the flash fire broke out after a valve malfunctioned, causing hydrocarbons to mix with steam that caused the accident.

“Preliminary findings indicate that the malfunction of a check valve in the crude oil distillation unit caused hydrocarbons to mix with steam, causing the flash fire,” Pathak said.

“The explosion in the atmospheric vacuum unit of the main plant occurred on Tuesday (November 12) when it was restarted after a month and a half of shutdown for maintenance work,” she added.

Significantly, she also announced that a committee would be constituted to investigate the cause of the fire. “The composition of the investigation team would be finalized once senior officials arrive here from headquarters,” she noted.

About the incident

On Tuesday (November 12), a massive fire broke out at the Indian oil refinery in Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh. According to the information released, the fire broke out around 8:30 PM while the main power plant was being restarted after 40 days of closure. The official claimed that more than 10 people were injured in the incident; however, the number was later reconfirmed at eight.

Significantly, Pathak also mentioned that of the total number of injured in the incident, they are being treated in different hospitals. While junior technical assistant Irfan (32), team leader Rajiv Kumar (33) and contract worker Santosh (32) have been sent to Apollo Hospitals in Delhi, the other injured patients, including Samir Srivastav (57) and Moolchand (58), were admitted to Refinery Hospital, and Satyavan (33), Harendra (26) and Mukesh (45) were admitted to Metro Hospital, Faridabad. Meanwhile, it is pertinent to note that all the injured patients are reportedly in a stable condition and are being closely monitored.

Fire brought under control

Meanwhile, the top communications official of the Indian oil refinery also stated that the fire has been brought under control and the operation of the plant remains unaffected.

“Despite the fire, the plant’s operations remained unaffected. The fire was quickly brought under control by the refinery’s own fire engines without the need for external assistance,” Pathak said.

Further, in the aftermath of the incident, District Magistrate Shailendra Singh also said that the district administration was in constant touch with the refinery authorities to assess the situation and ensure that appropriate action was taken.

(With inputs from PTI)