Martinez Refining Company Toxic Chemical Lawsuit

Vanessa Pipkins, who lives about a mile from the refinery, could see the fire from her front yard. As she watched, the fire was getting “bigger and bigger” and that she was hearing “weird rumbling noises” coming from the refinery that made her afraid that the refinery was “going to explode.”

Her calls to 911 did not result in any guidance on what she should do. Afraid for the safety of her family, Ms. Pipkins packed up her kids and pets and left the area. At the time Ms. Pipkins evacuated, no warning sirens had gone off and no alerts had been received by Ms. Pipkins. It was only after she was safely out of the area that she finally received an emergency alert.

Here are several pictures she took from her neighborhood as she fled:

Jeremie Wickman was at his home about ¼ of a mile from the refinery with his wife and grandson when the February 1, 2025 fire broke out.

Mr. Wickman is an honorably discharged veteran of the United States Army, having retired after a 20-year career with the rank of Master Sergeant. Mr. Wickman served three tours in Afghanistan and one tour in Iraq, and is no stranger to dangerous situations. After seeing the fire break out, he took action. He packed up his wife, grandson, and daughter, drove to collect his elderly (and sick) mother who lives nearby, and he took them about 20-miles out of the area to a hotel to escape the toxic smoke from the refinery.

While packing up his family, Mr. Wickman heard multiple “explosions” at the refinery, and it was not until several hours after the fire broke out (and when he was already safe at the out-of-town hotel) that Mr. Wickman received an emergency notification on his cell phone about the fire. Mr. Wickman contacted counsel on Saturday evening once he was safe, and was notably hoarse from the smoke exposure (among other symptoms).

Here’s a video that Mr. Wickman captured from his bedroom window before evacuating:

Lannay Tinsley (on file in the Manning action) lives less than two miles from the refinery and had to go to the emergency room on Saturday afternoon for treatment resulting from her inhalation of toxic smoke and particulates from the fire. 

Alice Saliba, who lives about half of a mile from the refinery, was also admitted to the ER on Saturday evening after experiencing shortness of breath, a burning sensation on her face and eyes, a soar throat, and tightness in her chest from exposure to the toxic smoke from the fire.