Oil from the Exxon Mobil Beaumont refinery has spilled outside the facility onto a nearby county road, the company reported.
“We are monitoring a sheen. There is not a reported oil spill,” spokeswoman Charlotte Huffaker said by email.
She said company emergency response teams were on hand. The flooding was attributed to rising water on the Neches River.
Earlier, another spokeswoman, Ashley Alemayehu, said Exxon Mobil had reported the sheen on Gulf States Road to government authorities. That road, owned by the county, runs between Exxon Mobil and Arkema facilities toward the Neches River.
The lower part of the refinery is flooding, Alemayehu said. “The levee for the refinery is at 10 feet,” and water has gone over it.
The refinery is working to contain the spill and has “deployed emergency response teams to provide additional environmental protection.”
Exxon Mobil’s chemical plant is still dry, she said, and parts of the refinery at higher elevation are secure.
Oh joy, how convenient.