emergency preparedness

Chevron personnel exercise forward thinking by constantly monitoring our process units to identify what could go wrong, such as mechanical breakdowns, and what the impact might be. In addition, we maintain regular contact with state and local agencies and work with them to conduct large-scale emergency drills.

emergency response team

The refinery’s on-site fire department (Plant Protection Group) is equipped with state-of-the-art response equipment and staffed by 14 full-time professional (OSHA-approved) fire fighters who conduct regular training for the refinery’s Emergency Response Team (ERT).

Recognized industry-wide for its excellence, our ERT is made up of approximately 80 employee volunteers who each year undergo 150 hours of specialized training that qualifies them to effectively respond to any and all types of industrial emergency situations. Training areas include – industrial fire fighting (hydrocarbon, chemical and structural fires); high angle and confined space rescue; hazardous materials release or leak response; and emergency vehicular operations training. Additionally, the ERT’s Medical First Responders and nationally certified Emergency Medical Technicians respond to medical emergencies.

emergency response plans

While Chevron Pascagoula maintains an exemplary safety record, we have multiple emergency response plans in place to effectively respond to any plant emergency. In the event of an incident, Plant Protection’s highly trained Emergency Response Team is immediately dispatched to the scene, and refinery-wide multi-discipline emergency response groups establish an Incident Command Center to manage a comprehensive response. Incident Command personnel notify all area government agencies, and a trained Public Affairs Team provides up-to-date information to the media, Refinery employees, and community inquirers. In the event that the incident is of concern to the public, Incident Command personnel work with the Jackson County Emergency Communications District to notify the community, and Public Affairs Team personnel dispatch alerts to all area media outlets. The response teams keep the community and media updated throughout the incident.

oil spill prevention and preparedness

The refinery also maintains an extensively trained Pascagoula Oil Spill Response Team and regularly conducts oil spill drills. If oil were to spill in the water, our on-staff teams would respond immediately, deploying floating oil booms to contain the spill. Oil recovered from a spill would be pumped into a storage tank for recycling.

As part of the refinery’s oil spill preparedness, members of Pascagoula Oil Spill Response Team designed and had constructed a one-of-a-kind wildlife rehabilitation unit – the first fully-equipped oiled wildlife rehab unit in the world that can be transported by air. Built by Featherlite to rigorous specifications, the trailer is 108 inches in height, the maximum height commercial air carriers can accommodate. On the ground, the trailer can be pulled by a standard truck (one or two ton) with the proper hitch.

The 38-by-8 foot trailer contains all the specialized equipment required to evaluate, clean and rehabilitate oiled wildlife. It is also equipped with the laboratory facilities required by a veterinarian during the response and rehabilitation period.

community emergency planning

Chevron Pascagoula emergency response personnel fill key leadership positions on Jackson County’s Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC), a network of representatives from the county’s public and private sectors who work to plan and coordinate all types of emergency response in the county, including those involving hazardous material, training and community awareness. The group is made up of representatives from 40 public safety, health, emergency services agencies, and local industries. All municipal and county fire, police and civil defense agencies in Jackson County have representatives on the LEPC.

LEPC participating industries, including the Pascagoula Refinery, worked with the Jackson County Civil Defense Director to establish a countywide emergency notification system. The Pascagoula Refinery provided $7,775 to the county Emergency Office for the Emergency Warning Evacuation System which was launched in spring 2003. For a listing of LEPC members and contact information, go to www.jclepc.org.