I was hurt in a refinery or chemical plant explosion. Who is responsible?

Plant explosions are almost never one company's fault

Fires, explosions and toxic releases at refineries and chemical plants usually come from a chain of failures: a corroded line, a valve left open, a permit that missed a hazard, an alarm that was ignored, a unit started up too soon. Different companies often own each link in that chain. The plant owner runs the units and the permit system. Contractors do the maintenance and turnaround work. Equipment manufacturers make the valves, hoses, pumps and instruments that fail. Each can share responsibility.

The Houston area has seen this before

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board has investigated some of the worst industrial disasters in the country here. The 2005 BP Texas City refinery explosion killed 15 people and injured 180. In 2020 an explosion at Watson Grinding in west Houston killed two workers. In 2021 an acid release at LyondellBasell's La Porte complex killed two contract workers. The 2019 ITC tank farm fire in Deer Park burned for three days.

What the federal investigation can and can't do for you

After a serious incident, the CSB, OSHA and the company itself may all investigate. Those investigations can reveal what went wrong, but federal law says the CSB's conclusions and findings cannot be admitted as evidence in a lawsuit for damages. The facts they uncover still point to where the proof is: logs, alarms, maintenance records, permits, inspection reports and witnesses. Your own claim needs its own evidence, gathered and preserved early.

How your claim is shaped

• If you worked for a contractor: claims against the plant owner run through Texas Chapter 95, which requires showing the owner controlled the work and knew of the danger. How Chapter 95 works.
• Against other contractors and manufacturers: ordinary negligence and product liability rules.
• Against your own employer: workers' comp benefits if it is covered; a negligence claim if it is a non-subscriber.
• Neighbors and passersby hurt by a release or a blast can have claims too.

The evidence we go after

Refineries and chemical plants generate detailed records, and most of what proves a case lives in them:

• Process safety records required by OSHA: process hazard analyses, management-of-change records, mechanical integrity inspections of vessels and piping, and operating procedures.
• Control-system data: alarm histories, pressure and temperature trends, and interlocks that were bypassed or overridden, captured by the plant's control system.
• Shift logs, work orders and permits for the unit and the job that day.
• Prior incidents and near misses in the same unit, and the plant's own investigation, which OSHA requires to start within 48 hours and to be kept for five years.
• The failed equipment itself, which must be preserved for engineers to examine.

What a claim can cover

Workers' comp, when your employer has it, pays medical care and part of your lost wages, but nothing for pain or the full loss of your earning ability. A claim against another responsible company, or against an employer without workers' comp, can cover all of it: medical bills now and in the future, every dollar of lost wages, lost earning capacity, pain, mental anguish, disfigurement and physical impairment. Burn cases often involve grafts and future surgeries, inhalation injuries can cause lasting lung damage, and blasts cause brain injuries, hearing loss and fractures, so future care is often the largest part of the claim. What a case is worth depends on the injuries, the future care they require, your work and the evidence of fault. No honest lawyer can put a number on it before reviewing those facts, and we never promise a result.

Burn and inhalation injuries need careful documentation

Burns, chemical exposure and smoke inhalation often get worse over the first days, and some lung injuries show up later. Get treated, follow up, and keep every record. A serious burn case usually involves future surgeries, scarring and lost earning capacity, and those need medical and economic experts. More on burn injury claims.

How these cases unfold

The company's investigation starts the same day, often with its lawyers and insurers involved. OSHA may inspect, and it has six months from a violation to issue citations. Federal investigations by the Chemical Safety Board can take years, and you don't have to wait for them. In the first weeks, our job is to send preservation demands so records, data and equipment are not lost, identify every company involved, and get you the medical care the claim depends on. Then come the experts, such as process-safety engineers, safety consultants, doctors and economists, followed by negotiations or a lawsuit. Many workplace cases resolve in one to three years; the most serious ones can take longer.

Don't give a statement to the company

After an incident, company safety staff and insurers may ask injured workers for statements. You don't have to give a recorded statement, and you should not sign anything before you understand it. Jimmy Suerken is a Mexican-American attorney who speaks Spanish, and you can talk with him directly. When a case calls for it, he brings in experienced co-counsel and the right experts.

More answers about industrial and plant accidents

Other ways people ask this

Can I sue the refinery after an explosion if I'm a contractor?

Possibly. Claims by contract workers against the plant owner run through Chapter 95, which requires showing the owner controlled how the work was done and knew about the danger. Other companies can be responsible too.

Can the Chemical Safety Board report be used in my case?

Not its conclusions or findings. Federal law bars them from being admitted in a damages lawsuit. The underlying facts, documents and witnesses can still be pursued in your own case.

I wasn't working there. I live nearby and was hurt by the release. Do I have a claim?

You may. Neighbors and passersby hurt by an explosion or chemical release can have claims against the companies responsible.

My lungs got worse days after the fire. Is it too late?

No. Some inhalation injuries appear or worsen later. Get evaluated now, and keep the records.

Do I have to wait for OSHA or the Chemical Safety Board to finish?

No. OSHA has six months to issue citations, and CSB investigations can take years. Your own claim should start right away, while evidence can still be preserved.

I received workers' comp. Can I still sue?

Usually not your own employer if it has workers' comp, but you can still bring claims against the plant owner, other contractors and equipment manufacturers who were responsible.

How much is a refinery explosion case worth?

It depends on the injuries, especially burns, lung damage and future surgeries, your work and the evidence. We give you an honest assessment after reviewing the facts, and we never promise a result.

Authority: CSB: BP Texas City · CSB: LyondellBasell La Porte · 40 CFR § 1611.2 (CSB reports) · Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code ch. 95 · OSHA 29 CFR 1910.119 (process safety) · OSH Act § 9 (citations)