HOUSTON — On June 27 Texas City residents received a notice to shelter in place due to a leak of sulfur dioxide from the Marathon Galveston Bay Refinery.
In order to receive the alert, residents had to preregister for the city’s opt-in emergency alert system or check the social media of local government agencies. With these limitations, it’s unlikely that everyone received the message in time. Those that don’t speak English often have to rely on direct translations from the social platform, or hope the alert service translates correctly.
The video above documents the sulfur dioxide leak, as well as a chemical fire in May that resulted in a death and an electrocution death in February.
Marathon has a long history in Texas City. The records used to evaluate violations issued from the Environmental Protection Agency or Texas Commision on Environmental Quality in Texas City can be found here. Violations related to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA, for Marathon’s Galveston Bay Refinery can be found here.
The timeline below provides more details about each individual event.