1975 Philadelphia Gulf refinery fire
A refinery owned by Gulf Oil Corporation in Philadelphia, located at Girard Point on the Schuylkill River in South Philadelphia, caught fire on August 17, 1975. This incident resulted in the death of eight firefighters of the Philadelphia Fire Department, injuries to 14 other firefighters, and the loss of four Philadelphia fire apparatus.
At the height of this fire, the loss of the huge, sprawling refinery complex was regarded as a real possibility as a tremendous firestorm enveloped two storage tanks, piping, and the refinery’s administration building.
The refinery, built in 1905, occupied 723 acres (2.93 km2) of land located on the east bank of the Schuylkill River at Penrose Avenue. The Penrose Avenue Bridge (now the George C. Platt Memorial Bridge) connects the east and west sides of the Schuylkill River and passes directly over the refinery. At the time of this fire, the refinery produced 180,000 barrels (29,000 m3) per day of refined petroleum products.
Prior to August 17, 1975, the refinery had been the scene of ten extra-alarm fires since 1960, eight of which had occurred since 1966. On September 9, 1960, several storage tanks were struck by lightning at the height of severe thunderstorms and resulted in an eight-alarm fire. On May 16, 1975, a six-alarm fire struck the Gulf Refinery. Subsequently, a second six-alarm fire occurred on October 20, 1975.
At 12:45 a.m. on the morning of Sunday, August 17, 1975, the tanker M/T Afran Neptune, tied up at a Gulf Refinery dock, began pumping reconstituted Venezuelan crude oil (with an additional 5 percent naphtha) into Gulf Refinery Tank No. 231. Tank No. 231, built in 1929, of riveted seam construction, had a capacity of 75,000 barrels (11,900 m3) and had recently been renovated with an internal floating roof. Within the refinery, the tank was located at Avenue “Y” and 4th Street.
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