Fire at Russia's Largest Oil Refinery Leaves Seven Hospitalized

Seven people were hospitalized, including one in serious condition, following a fire at Russia's Omsk oil refinery. Despite the incident, the refinery, controlled by Gazprom Neft, reported that operations and production plans are unaffected, as the fire was swiftly contained. The cause remains unknown.

Seven individuals were hospitalized, with one in serious condition, after a fire broke out at the Omsk oil refinery, Russia's largest, according to the local governor on Monday. Despite the incident, the refinery assured that its operations and production plans remain unaffected.

'The fire at the Omsk refinery is under control,' stated the refinery. The plant's automatic safety system had detected the blaze in its technological equipment, and containment measures were swiftly implemented. The refinery, which constitutes about 8% of Russia's total oil refining volume, operates under the control of Gazprom Neft.

Local governor Vitaly Khotsenko confirmed on Telegram that seven people were hospitalized, with one seriously injured. Reports indicated that a massive explosion was heard across several districts of Omsk. Sources revealed that the fire impacted CDU-11, one of the plant's major refining units. Meanwhile, CDU-10, another primary unit, had been idle due to a fire earlier in August. The cause of the latest fire is yet to be determined, but several Russian oil refineries have recently been targeted by Ukrainian drone attacks. The Omsk refinery processed over 21 million metric tons of crude oil in 2022.

(With inputs from agencies.)