Fire at Kern County, California Oil Refinery Injures Three Workers

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (AP) -- A pipeline carrying crude oil at the Kern Oil & Refining Co. broke Wednesday, igniting a fire that injured three employees who were hospitalized for burns, authorities said.

The fire started shortly before 9 a.m., and three workers were treated at the scene for moderate to serious burns and taken to the hospital, said Chris Cagle, an engineer for the Kern County Fire Department.

One worker was released from the hospital after being treated for minor burns to his face and the other two workers were en route to the Grossman Burn Center at Sherman Oaks Hospital in Los Angeles, said company spokesman Neil Walker.

He said refining operations were not interrupted and that workers extinguished the fire soon after it started.

The cause of the pipeline rupture was under investigation.