Texas dredging vessel fire- refinery operations unharmed but crew missing

Fire and explosion near the Port of Corpus Christi, Texas, on Friday, caused the U.S. Coast Guard to close the port's inner harbor, the agency said. The incident occurred shortly after 9.00 ET (1300 GMT) near 'refinery row', an area named for its proximity to several refining facilities when a dredging vessel, Waymon L Boyd caught fire.

Four members of a dredging vessel are missing after the incident. Two injured crew members have been rescued from the dredging vessel  after it caught fire, while a search for missing crew members continues, the Coast Guard said.

Corpus Christi is home to a number of oil refineries and shipping ports, and has become an important exporting locale for crude oil. Valero on Friday said operations at its refinery were normal.

The U.S. Coast Guard closed the Inner Harbor from Harbor Bridge inward of the Port of Corpus Christi ship channel.

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