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Top Cancerous Air Pollution Areas in the United States An extensive analysis has identified over 1,000 communities in the United States that are classified as hotspots for carcinogenic or cancer-causing air pollution. These sites suffer from carcinogenic air pollution as the result of leaks from industrial facilities of different types. There are some key facts derived from the dead zone report: Five of the top 20 carcinogenic hot spots in the country are located in the state of Texas Three…

Shortly after 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, July 31, 2019, an explosion ripped through a processing unit at the Baytown Olefins Plant, an ExxonMobil oil refinery. The Olefins Plant explosion resulted in a large fire in the unit, the blaze contained by firefighters but still burning on Thursday. A large and growing smoke plume arose from the explosion site, drifted across the city of Baytown. The smoke plume potentially contains harmful toxins because the Baytown refinery processes light hydrocarbons, including propylene…

Baytown ExxonMobil Chemical Plant Hit by Explosion, Fire A fire at the ExxonMobil Olefins Plant in Baytown, Texas, has led to an evacuation of workers from the facility and a “precautionary shelter-in-place” order affecting areas adjacent to the facility.  The fire, which appears to involve a single “tower” at the plant, is producing a cloud of thick black smoke that is being dispersed by light winds after rising several hundred feet into the air. According to local emergency responders, the…

An explosion occurred early this morning at a KMCO specialty chemical plant in Crosby, Texas. Authorities report that two people have been injured. One of the injured is stable while the other is currently in critical condition. Hazmat is currently on site and monitoring air quality. The cause of the blast is currently unknown but authorities have evacuated the immediate area as part of precautionary measures. The KMCO plant in Crosby handles multiple products from antifreeze to brake fluid. There…

Emergency crews were dispatched to a chemical processing plant in east Harris County, Texas, about 25 miles northeast of Houston, in the late morning hours of April 2. The plant is located in Crosby, Texas. An explosion was reported at the Crosby chemical plant. Directly after the incident, officials with Harris County reported that two people at the Crosby chemical plant were injured in the initial explosion. Officials did use the term “initial explosion” without further elaboration. The extent of…