Full investigation begins to establish cause of Stanlow oil refinery fire

A full investigation has now begun to establish the cause of a major fire at Stanlow oil refinery site on Wednesday (August 22).

The huge blaze, which started in a manufacturing unit on the site, raged for hours and sent thick plumes of smoke billowing across the skies for miles around.

All staff were thankfully accounted for and evacuated from the unit, which remains shut down today as experts try to determine what caused the fire.

Ian Cotton, a spokesperson for Essar who operate the Shell Higher Olefins Plant (SHOP) chemical plant, told The Chronicle: "Following yesterday’s fire at the Shell Higher Olefins Plant chemical plant, the unit remains shut down.

"A full investigation has begun to understand the cause of the incident and we are liaising with the relevant authorities.

"Operations at the Stanlow Refinery have not been affected and all supplies of fuels and other products to customers are normal.”

Crews remained on the scene until around 7.30pm – five hours after the blaze took hold.