NuStar Plant in Crockett Reopens Weeks After Fire and Explosion

The NuStar Energy plant in Crockett has resumed most of its operations more than three weeks after an explosion and fire at the facility led officials to issue shelter-in-place orders for thousands of nearby residents and forced the closure of the nearby I-80 freeway for several hours.

The reopening comes after California workplace regulators ordered the plant to shut down amid investigations by state and local agencies into the fire that burned two ethanol storage tanks on Oct. 15.

California's Department of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) lifted that order on Oct. 31, according to agency spokeswoman Erika Monterroza.

NuStar representative Chris Cho said the plant, dubbed the Selby Terminal, reopened on Monday for all non-ethanol service. All of the tanks holding jet fuel and diesel are back in service, and companies that deliver and take out fuel from the plant now have access to the facility, according to Cho.

"At this time, the investigation is continuing within the tank area where the incident occurred," Cho said, adding that the company did not know when its ethanol tanks would be returned to service.

"The facility is just beginning to operate some of the tanks that weren't affected," said Wayne Kino, deputy air pollution control officer at the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, during an agency board meeting Wednesday.

Kino told members of the board's executive committee that investigators are still trying to determine the root cause of the incident.

During the hearing, Nancy Reeser, a Crockett resident and local environmentalist, said it was only sheer luck that the explosion did not take place during one of the region's recent high wind events.

"The realization dawned upon us that Crockett might be the next Paradise, as our only other two ways out of town were two narrow country roads that go through parkland that could potentially be engulfed in flames," Reeser said during public comment.

Along with the air district, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District officials and Cal/OSHA are investigating the fire, which led to a seven hour shelter-in-place order for parts of the county and the shutdown of Interstate 80 in both directions.

County firefighters along with fire crews from several nearby oil refineries battled the blaze.

There were less than 3,000 barrels of denatured ethanol in each of the tanks that caught fire, according to a 72-hour follow-up report NuStar filed with the county. The tanks also held an "unknown quantity of other potential fuels," according to the report.

No workers or firefighters were injured in the blaze, but one contract employee had to be rescued by firefighters. That worker was brought into the NuStar plant to perform maintenance.

Cho, along with state and county officials, have not released the name of the company that hired the contractor worker.

The NuStar terminal stores renewable fuels and petroleum products for refineries and other companies throughout Northern California, according to the California Energy Commission.

It has a three million barrel storage capacity in 24 tanks. Before the fire, it received ethanol by rail tank car and marine vessels, some of which bring the fuel from Brazil.

Some of the company's customers have had to look for alternative means to unload their ethanol, according to the commission.