Caracas, 28 August (Argus) — The last fire burning in a fuel storage tank at Venezuelan state-run oil company PdV's 640,000 b/d Amuay refinery was completely extinguished at 9:20am local time today, according to energy minister and PdV president Rafael Ramirez.
Earlier this week Ramirez said the refinery would restart two days after fires affecting three tanks were put out, but extensive damage from the weekend explosion has cast doubt on that plan.
PdV firefighting teams are still spraying chemical foam on the burned-out tanks and surrounding areas to cool the damaged installations before safety inspectors and government investigators will be allowed to access the area where the lethal blast occurred.
“The cooling procedures will continue as long as we consider necessary,” Ramirez said.
He also admitted for the first time today that Amuay refinery operators detected the gas leak almost 90 minutes before the explosion.
The death toll from the explosion stands at 48, with at least 100 more injuries. At least six people are still missing. Over 530 homes next to the refinery were completely destroyed or suffered major structural damage that make them uninhabitable.
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