Truck Driver Critically Injured in San Antonio Refinery Explosion

A truck driver, who was seriously injured in an explosion at a San Antonio refinery, continues to remain in a critical condition. Investigations into the explosion are going on, but so far there is no information on what caused the massive explosion last week.

The explosion occurred on Wednesday morning at the AGE refinery in San Antonio, while a truck was being loaded up with fuel. No one knows why the initial explosion was set off, but it was followed by several small explosions. Very soon, several trucks were on fire.

The situation was so bad that several apartment complexes in the vicinity had to be evacuated by emergency personnel. There were very serious fears that the fire would spread to large tanks loaded with jet fuel. The flames generated dark clouds of smoke that could be seen for miles. Firefighters responding to the scene found it hard to get to the flames, because the intense heat melted their truck engines.

One truck driver has been confirmed seriously injured in the explosion. The driver was not an employee of AGE Refinery.

There are several investigations going on into the accident. The San Antonio Fire Department has initiated its probe, while the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the Environmental Protection Agency have both initiated investigations. Investigators from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration have also arrived at the San Antonio facility.

It's not for nothing that workers in the oil and gas industry are considered to have some of the most dangerous jobs. Refineries in Texas have been the scenes of some particularly devastating accidents. This refinery explosion did not result in any fatalities, but as any Texas industrial accident lawyer will tell you, that seems to have been more the good luck of the workers who were in the vicinity when the truck exploded.

This could so easily have turned into a tragedy, and experience tells us that we have God and good fortune to thank for that, and not the safety aids at the refinery.