LOUD flares echoed over Altona North last Sunday after a power outage caused the Mobil refinery to revert to out of operation mode.
At about 8.30pm, Powercor had a brief power interruption that a spokesman said could have been caused by a falling tree branch or bird. Both police and Melbourne Fire Brigade attended the scene.
A Mobil spokesman said the operation of the refinery, which is heavily reliant on power supply, was stopped as part of their emergency control system. The plant shut down automatically and there were a number of safe processes around the shut down. Large flares burnt for several hours to dispel any built up gas in the system. “The systems are set up to handle shut down like this. Normal emergency systems worked as they should have done,” he said. There was no damage despite reports that had suggested there was fire.
– Nicole Precel
