Undefeated Refinery Injury Lawyers
Over the last five years, more than 70 fires, explosions, and chemical incidents have erupted at oil and gas refineries in Texas and Louisiana. According to the Coalition to Prevent Chemical Disasters, at least eight of these devastating events occurred at ExxonMobil facilities, resulting in over four dozen serious injuries. These incidents not only impact the lives of workers and their families, but also those of many residents who live in ExxonMobil’s major hubs, including Baytown, Beaumont, Houston, and Baton Rouge.
If you were injured in an ExxonMobil refinery accident, understanding your rights and options is critical to seeking the justice and compensation you deserve.
With Billions won, our undefeated Texas refinery explosion lawyers know exactly what it takes to stand up to oil and gas giants like ExxonMobil. With the resources and experience to take on the largest corporations in the world, we not only win, but secure record-setting results for our clients.
Here’s what you need to know to protect your rights and take quick action to hold the company fully accountable after a serious refinery accident.
About ExxonMobil
As the largest U.S.-based oil and gas corporation, ExxonMobil runs massive petrochemical plants and refineries worldwide, with a heavy concentration along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast. These complexes pack refineries, chemical plants, plastics and polymer facilities, and lubricants manufacturing into single sprawling sites where hazards are constant.
While they employ thousands and generate Billions in revenue, ExxonMobil refineries are notorious for repeated safety violations, explosions, and chemical releases that put workers and surrounding communities at risk.
ExxonMobil Baytown Complex
Located on 3,400 acres along the Houston Ship Channel, the Baytown Complex is the second-largest refinery operation in the United States. With a production capacity of 560,000 barrels per day, it employs over 22,000 workers and contractors across four major manufacturing sites—including the ExxonMobil Olefins plant, one of the world’s largest ethylene producers.
Despite its economic significance, Baytown has a long record of safety failures. OSHA has issued over $4.7 million in fines against the facility, citing serious violations such as inadequate protection against chemical exposure and other hazards that place workers at constant risk.
ExxonMobil Baton Rouge
Located on the Mississippi River, this Louisiana complex employs over 6,000 workers and has a refining capacity of approximately 502,500 barrels per day. It has faced over $3 million in OSHA fines for safety violations, including inadequate emergency response procedures.
ExxonMobil Beaumont Complex
Located in Beaumont, Texas, this refinery recently underwent a major $2 billion expansion — the largest refinery expansion in the nation since 2012 — increasing its capacity to approximately 634,000 barrels per day. The site accounts for 1 in every seven regional jobs, with 2,100 employees and 3,000 contractors. However, it has faced scrutiny for environmental concerns, including air quality issues and emissions.
ExxonMobil & Qatar Energy Joint Venture — Golden Pass LNG, Sabine Pass, TX
ExxonMobil’s reach in the oil and gas industry extends beyond its own name-brand facilities. Its new $10 billion joint venture with QatarEnergy, Golden Pass LNG in Sabine Pass, Texas, represents one of the largest LNG export projects in the country. Even though the facility is not yet fully operational, it has already developed a troubling safety record, including a fatal scaffolding accident at its export terminal construction site in August 2025.
ExxonMobil’s History of Preventable Accidents and Safety Violations
What’s most alarming about Exxonmobil refinery accidents is that the overwhelming majority of these disasters are entirely preventable — and they keep happening, year after year, despite repeated warnings and citations.
Through our own investigations on behalf of ExxonMobil Baytown Olefins Plant workers injured in a massive explosion, we’ve uncovered the same disturbing truth that OSHA and regulators have repeatedly confirmed: ExxonMobil consistently prioritizes production and profits over worker and community safety.
48 Workers Seriously Injured in Major ExxonMobil Accidents in Past 10 Years
- Baton Rouge Refinery Explosion, 2016: A massive blast injured four workers, including one who suffered severe burns and another who was thrown from scaffolding.
- Baton Rouge Refinery Fire, 2017: Nearly a year later, another fire broke out at the same facility. While no injuries were reported, it underscored ongoing safety issues.
- Baytown Complex Furnace Fire, 2019: A large fire sent a towering plume of smoke over the area, prompting shelter-in-place orders for nearby residents.
- Baytown Olefins Plant Explosion, 2019: A mass-casualty explosion injured more than 40 workers.
- Baytown Complex Explosion, 2021: Two days before Christmas, an explosion and fire injured four workers. Our Undefeated Refinery Explosion Lawyers represented several Olefins plant workers injured in this incident.
Even beyond these headline-making disasters, ExxonMobil’s failures persist.
Multiple Serious Safety Violations in 2024 Alone
- March 2024: Baytown Refinery Furnace Fire released toxic xylene, toluene, and benzene into surrounding communities.
- July 2024: A valve feeding two pipelines at the Crescent Midstream Crude Oil terminal in Raceland, Louisiana, opened, releasing oil that threatened wildlife and drinking water in Bayou LaFourche.
- September 2024: The Baytown refinery released 12,330 pounds of sulfur dioxide during maintenance on a faulty sulfur unit, prompting shelter-in-place orders.
- March 2025: OSHA regulators conducted an unprogrammed inspection at the Beaumont facility. These inspections aren’t routine—complaints, serious incidents, injuries, or fatalities typically trigger them.
This isn’t just negligence—it’s a pattern. By cutting corners, ignoring safety protocols, and failing to correct known hazards, ExxonMobil has created a workplace culture where preventable tragedies keep happening again and again.
What Causes ExxonMobil Refinery Accidents?
Refinery work is inherently dangerous. Employees are regularly exposed to hazardous chemicals, high-pressure equipment, and flammable materials, making the potential for fires, explosions, and chemical releases a constant concern.
However, beyond the risky nature of this industrial work, OSHA inspections and accident investigations frequently show that corporations putting profits over safety is the most common cause of plant and refinery accidents.
Cost-cutting at ExxonMobil often leads to:
- Improper training
- Negligent hiring or staffing practices
- Lack of safety protocols and enforcement
- Fatigued workers on long shifts
- Poor equipment maintenance
- Failure to address known hazards
Many refinery accidents are not simply “bad luck.” They are entirely preventable. When that is the case, you have the right to hold every at-fault party fully accountable for causing you harm — and you need to take action as quickly as possible to protect yourself.
How to Protect Your Rights If You Were Injured at an ExxonMobil Plant
This ongoing pattern of preventable accidents makes on thing clear: you cannot rely on ExxonMobil to prioritize your well-being after an explosion, fire, or chemical release. The company will have teams of lawyers and insurance representatives working to avoid responsibility from day one — including limiting you to workers’ compensation benefits and preventing you from recovering the damages you deserve.
If you’ve been injured, acting quickly is critical. The steps you take immediately following an accident can affect the evidence, the strength of your claim, and the compensation you may ultimately recover.
Follow these steps to secure the justice and compensation you deserve:
1. Seek Immediate Medical Attention:
Even if injuries seem minor, chemical exposures, burns, or internal trauma may not show symptoms right away. Don’t let ExxonMobil pressure you into seeing company-selected doctors or back to work before you’re fully evaluated. Prompt documentation by trusted medical professionals is critical—not only for your health, but for any legal claim.
2. Preserve Evidence:
Keep records of your injuries, medical treatments, and any communication with your employer. Photographs of the accident scene, equipment, and unsafe conditions can be crucial in proving what really happened.
3. Report the Accident:
Notify your employer about the injury in writing and follow company reporting procedures. OSHA and other regulatory bodies may also need to be informed, especially if unsafe conditions caused the incident.
4. DO NOT Speak to ExxonMobil or Its Insurers Without Legal Guidance:
From the moment of the accident, the company and its insurers are working to avoid responsibility, and may even go as far as attempting to downplay your injuries, and obtain statements that could be used against you. Never speak to them before consulting your attorney. Every word counts—and we make sure it’s used to protect your rights, not the corporation’s bottom line.
5. Contact an Undefeated Refinery Explosion Lawyer as Soon as Possible:
A law firm with a proven track record in refinery accidents can investigate the incident, identify all responsible parties, and help ensure you recover the maximum compensation possible for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and all other damages. At Zehl & Associates, we face down the largest oil and gas companies, we fight tirelessly so workers and their families are never left to handle these disasters alone, and we don’t just win — we set records.
How Zehl & Associates Can Help After an ExxonMobil Refinery Accident
In addition to ensuring that industrial workers receive the maximum compensation possible, our Refinery & Plant Explosion Lawyers make sure that:
- You’re able to see the best doctors and medical providers for your injuries
- You’re able to pay your medical bills and necessary living expenses while your case is pending, and
- You have access to the best tax and financial professionals after your case has been resolved, so that you’re able to continue caring and providing for yourself and your family for the rest of your life
Corporations know who we are, what we stand for, and that we have never lost a case. As a result, we have repeatedly recovered the largest verdicts and settlements concerning the most catastrophic plant, refinery, and industrial accidents in history, including the #1 largest oilfield burn injury settlement in U.S. History.
Our firm is proudly representing three of the victims of the recent Port Arthur LNG disaster, including the families of two workers who lost their lives.
Contact the Undefeated Texas Refinery Explosion Lawyers from Zehl & Associates Injury & Accident Lawyers for Help Today, Call 1-888-603-3636
In addition to being undefeated, our Plant and Refinery Explosion Lawyers have won Billions for our clients, including the largest verdicts and settlements in history on behalf of industrial workers and their families throughout Texas, Louisiana, and the United States.
For more information, please contact our Undefeated refinery explosion attorneys in Texas at Zehl & Associates Injury & Accident Lawyers to schedule a free consultation today.
We proudly serve Harris County, Midland County, and throughout the state of Texas. We are located in Houston and Midland and throughout the state of Texas:
Zehl & Associates Injury & Accident Lawyers – Houston
2700 Post Oak Blvd #1000, Houston, TX 77056
(888) 603-3636
Open 24 hours
Zehl & Associates Injury & Accident Lawyers – Midland
306 W Wall St Suite 701, Midland, TX 79701
(432) 220-0000
Open 24 hours