Chevron burn concerns N. Manhattan residents

Chevron’s burnoff Monday morning was visible from Grandview Elementary. Photo by Nina Tarnay

A large flame and plume of smoke emanating from the Chevron El Segundo refinery early Monday resulted in more than 100 resident complaints to the South Coast Air Quality Management District, several of them from neighboring Manhattan Beach residents who were concerned for their safety and health.

The Manhattan Beach Police Department issued a statement on its Nixle public messaging system at 8:08 a.m., twenty minutes after the large flame erupted from a stack at the refinery.

The Chevron Refinery in El Segundo is conducting a large burn off at this time,” the statement said. “There is no threat to the community.”

MBFD also issued a Nixle alert at 8:46 a.m. “Chevron has advised that the flame and smoke is a burn off of petroleum product and is under control,” the alert said.

Chevron also sent out an email.

“At approximately 7:45 a.m. this morning the El Segundo refinery experienced a power loss to a portion of its facility,” Chevron said. “In response to the power outage, Chevron personnel activated the appropriate response systems, including the safety flare.”

More than 200 North Manhattan and El Segundo residents chimed in on NextDoor, the neighborhood social media app. Their concerns ranged from ash covering cars to the safety of their children.

Nina Tarnay was dropping her kid off at Grandview Elementary, nearly a mile from Chevron when she saw the flame.

“As a parent I was and still am definitely concerned,” Tarnay said. “As I’ve been told, these burn-offs are necessary whenever there is a power failure. While it hasn’t been frequent of late —  I recall a period a few years back where the burn offs were pretty frequent though not as large — I hope Chevron is working on and can quickly find a better solution than releasing all that pollution into our skies. The communication lagged more than I was comfortable with. It was concerning to drop off my 10-year-old at school without knowing if there was a potential emergency on hand.”

The SCAQMD said it is looking into the matter.

“The flaring at Chevron was unplanned as a result of an apparent power interruption at the facility,” said Sam Atwood, an agency spokesperson. “SCAQMD is currently conducting an investigation of the incident.”

Councilperson Richard Montgomery agendized a discussion of the incident, including Chevron representatives, for Wednesday night’s meeting. He said he was particularly concerned by the various reports regarding whether the burn off was planned or not.

“I, along with the mayor, have asked Chevron to come to council tonight to address the concerns from our residents on the chemicals related to the burn off as well as the conflicting information regarding ‘planned burn off’ versus power loss,” Montgomery said.

MBPD reported another flare on Tuesday morning.

“El Segundo Chevron reports that this morning there was a catalyst dust release impacting North Manhattan Beach,” MBPD said in another Nixle alert. “They reported there is no health hazard at this time.”

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