A huge blaze erupted at a Philadelphia oil refinery early Friday, sending a fireball into the sky and forcing residents to stay off nearby roads, local media and officials said. Footage on the East Coast city’s NBC affiliate station showed plumes of smoke towering from the Philadelphia Energy Solutions refining complex. The blaze in south Philadelphia broke out around 4:00 am (0800 GMT) when a series of explosions occurred, according to NBC10. Philadelphia’s Office of Emergency Management asked residents and workers at businesses east of the scene to remain indoors until further notice. The PES refining complex — which has existed in some form for more than 150 years — is the largest of its kind on the US East Coast, according to its website, and processes 335,000 barrels of crude per day.

Source: Punch June 21, 2019 11:03 UTC