ANACORTES—
A survivor of the Tesoro Refinery explosion has been upgraded to serious condition says officials at Harborview Medical Center.Matt Gumbel continues to recover in the intensive care unit with burns to his body. Lew Janz is still in critical condition. The two are the only survivors of the explosion that killed five other Tesoro employees in Friday's fire in Anacortes.
- 29 year old Kathryn Powell of Burlington
- 36 year old Donna Van Dreumel of Oak Harbor
- 31 year old Matthew Bowen of Arlington
- 43 year old Darrin Hoines of Ferndale
- 50 year old Daniel Aldredge of Anacortes
Early Friday, four medical helicopters flew in to help the injured workers after the blast at 12:40 a.m. The victims were taken to Seattle, which is 70 miles away from the refinery.
The blaze occurred while a unit was being brought back online after maintenance. The fire was extinguished in about 90 minutes.
There are reports that high winds kicked up the flames. Anacortes and several other areas were under a high wind warning at the time.
People say they felt the explosion as far as five miles away. The blast set off car alarms and shook homes. It does not appear that residents are being evacuated.
In a statement released, Tesoro said it notified the Washington Department of Labor and Industries and the local air district about what happened, adding "our priority at this time is focused on the safety of our employees and the community."
This refinery experienced another accident in 2006, when three workers were treated for exposure to chemicals after a glowing fire that frightened neighbors. Refinery managers called it a "ground flare" that burns excess gases after the site shuts down.
The Anacortes Refinery is located at 10200 W March Point Rd. Tesoro makes gasoline, jet fuel, diesel, heavy fuel oils, liquefied petroleum gas and asphalt at the refinery. It has a crude-oil capacity of 120,000 barrels per day.
Tesoro is accepting cards or letters of sympathy. You can send them to: Anacortes Refinery PO Box 700 Anacortes, WA 98221
