SAINT JOHN, N.B. — An explosion at an oil refinery in Saint John, N.B., set a fire and sent thick, black smoke pouring into the air on Monday morning.
The City of Saint John confirmed the explosion in a Facebook post, noting that emergency responders were on the scene.
It advised residents to shelter in place, and added that there were no evacuations
A local hospital said it had issued an "orange alert," meaning it was preparing for a possible influx of patients.
Irving Oil did not provide any details about the incident, saying it would release more information when it became available.
But residents of the area described feeling an explosion shortly after 10 a.m., and noted that flames and smoke could be seen from a great distance.
Litsa Daeres, 34, who lives nearby, said she just started preparing Thanksgiving dinner when she heard a "loud bang."
"My whole house shook," she said. "I thought my furnace had exploded."
But then Daeres opened her curtains and saw the flames and thick, black smoke, she said.
The refinery is near several residential neighbourhoods on Saint John’s east side, about five kilometres from the city core, known as Uptown.
According to the Irving Oil web site, the refinery produces more than 320,000 barrels of "finished energy products" every day, with more than half going the U.S. northeast.
"We refine a wide range of products for our wholesale and retail markets, including gasoline, diesel, heating oil, jet fuel, propane and asphalt," the website says.
"Our refinery opened in 1960, on a 780-acre site and has been upgraded throughout the years. We have also led in the development of cleaner and more efficient fuels and processes."
Nate Guimond, 36, said he was doing house repairs when he looked outside and saw the scene.
"There was thick, pitch black smoke mixed with white smoke," said Guimond. "I heard a rumbling, roaring sound."
He decided to drive by the refinery, and said he was nearby when he felt the vibrations of what he assumed must be a second explosion.
Michael Steeves, who lives in Saint John, said he was driving about a kilometre away when he noticed what was happening at the refinery.
"From where I was, you could see flames — I would expect they were about a hundred feet in the air — and you've got a huge plume of black smoke," he said about an hour and a half later.
He said he saw hundreds of residents watching the situation unfold from a distance.
Saint John Police tweeted that they were responding to the incident, and asked people to stay away from the area. Several streets have been closed down.
Steeves said the incident reminded him of a similar event in the late 90s, when the same refinery suffered a similar explosion which left one person dead.
"Just seeing the clouds, and what they've got closed off, it just seems to be a pretty similar level of event," he said.
Irving said on Twitter that the company is "actively assessing the situation" and will share more information when it becomes available.
The Canadian Press
