Venezuelan Oil Minister Tareck El Aissamireported this Monday that lightning struck a treatment lagoon located within the Puerto La Cruz Refineryin Anzoátegui state (east), causing a fire, from which no injuries were reported.
“A lightning strike hit a water treatment pond at the refinery, and since that pond has hydrocarbon residues, there has been a fire that at this time we are attacking“, indicated the minister in a telephone contact with the state channel Venezolana de Televisión (VTV).
He added that fire departments from different refineries in the east of the countryas well as protection and insurance equipment They are working to put out the fire.
“None of the facilities, or tanks, or plants of the refinery itself have been compromised at all, however, it is a fire of consideration (…) consequently, we have activated all the protocols that it deserves for the attention of this contingency“, he indicated.
According to El Aissami, all areas of operations were evacuated, so no fatalities or injuries have been reported. Also, he explained that the first objective is to control and confine the fire to the lagoon and then suffocate it completely.
“We, as far as possible, are going to make reports according to the progress of this eventuality until we have total control of this fire“, held.
Saturday, a fire was “totally” extinguished generated in a dock of the state oil company PDVSA, also located in Anzoátegui state, according to El Aissami.
In a message on his Twitter account, the official explained that the combustion at the Guaraguao pier occurred because “a gasoline loading arm broke spilling fuel on the ship’s deck and onto the dockwhich started a fire in that area.”
