Three Texas oil & gas industry sites that caught fire had long violation records

The three large refinery and petrochemical facilities along the Texas Gulf Coast that caught fire this month had long track records of environmental compliance problems, including a combined 5,469 violations over a decade but few penalties, according to state records. On May 5, a Shell chemical plant near Houston caught fire and burned for days. Ten days later, flames erupted at a Marathon oil refinery south of Houston, burning to death a plant worker. And on May 17, a blaze broke out at a Valero refinery in Corpus Christi. Long records of repeat violations often indicate a pattern of companies not investing in modern equipment and safety measures.