EL SEGUNDO — A major fire broke out late Thursday at Chevron’s El Segundo refinery, sending flames and smoke high above the South Bay skyline and drawing a swift response from local and state officials. Authorities said no injuries have been reported and no evacuation orders have been issued.
The fire was reported shortly after 9 p.m. local time, with video from nearby neighborhoods showing an orange glow and plumes of dark smoke rising from the sprawling refinery complex. Chevron’s in-house fire brigade was first on the scene, while the Los Angeles Fire Department and Los Angeles County Fire Department were placed on standby to provide assistance.
California Governor Gavin Newsom’s office confirmed that state agencies were coordinating with local responders.
“Our office is monitoring the incident and working with Chevron and local officials to protect the community,” the governor’s office said in a statement.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass assured residents that operations at Los Angeles International Airport, located just north of the refinery, were not affected. “There are currently no impacts to LAX. LAFD stands ready to provide mutual aid if called upon,” Bass said.
Chevron’s El Segundo refinery covers roughly 1.5 square miles along the coast and is one of the largest oil processing facilities on the West Coast. The plant has a daily capacity of about 290,000 barrels of crude oil, producing gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel for California and beyond. It is connected to more than 1,100 miles of pipeline and has been in operation since 1911.
While the company has not released details about the cause of the fire, local officials said the flames appeared contained to specific units within the facility. No immediate structural damage outside the refinery has been reported.
Officials stressed that there was no need for evacuations Thursday night. The South Coast Air Quality Management District said it is monitoring air samples from surrounding communities, though no significant spikes in pollutants had been detected as of late evening.
County Supervisor Holly Mitchell said officials would “continue monitoring conditions closely” and urged residents to remain indoors if they noticed smoke in their area.
Chevron has not commented publicly beyond confirming the fire and saying its response teams are working to bring the blaze under control. Investigators are expected to begin examining the site once conditions are safe.
The El Segundo refinery has recently been ramping up operations after some processing units were idled earlier this year. The incident could complicate efforts to stabilize production at a facility critical to California’s fuel supply chain.
Authorities said updates will be provided as more information becomes available about the extent of the damage and the potential impact on local air quality and energy supplies.
