It appears that Hurricane Rita caused minimal disruption to the Houston oil industry while the fate of other US Gulf Coast refineries is less clear. The energy department in Washington said it was "cautiously optimistic" about Houston after the giant storm made less inland impact than feared. But a refinery in Port Arthur seemed to have been seriously damaged and two in Louisiana may also have been hit. Rita shut all Gulf crude oil production and much natural gas output. However, it seems to have caused much less damage to the industry than last month's storm.
The energy department in Washington said it was "cautiously optimistic" about Houston after the giant storm made less inland impact than feared.
But a refinery in Port Arthur seemed to have been seriously damaged and two in Louisiana may also have been hit.
Rita shut all Gulf crude oil production and much natural gas output.
However, it seems to have caused much less damage to the industry than last month's storm.
Hurricane Rita has slammed into evacuated towns and oil refineries in the swamplands of the Texas-Louisiana border, stripping roofs off buildings, cutting power to more than 1 million homes and flooding New Orleans again. But Federal Emergency Management Agency chief David Paulison says no deaths have been reported and the damage is less severe than expected. "Every mayor that we have talked to is crediting the evacuation for the fact that we have no reported deaths at this time," Mr Paulison told a press conference. Rita spared Houston, the fourth-largest US city, a direct hit. But oil city Beaumont, Texas, gambling-and-chemicals centre Lake Charles, Louisiana and many of the largest US refiners came into the storm's path. Some refiners were hopeful they would find little damage from Rita.
But Federal Emergency Management Agency chief David Paulison says no deaths have been reported and the damage is less severe than expected.
"Every mayor that we have talked to is crediting the evacuation for the fact that we have no reported deaths at this time," Mr Paulison told a press conference.
Rita spared Houston, the fourth-largest US city, a direct hit.
But oil city Beaumont, Texas, gambling-and-chemicals centre Lake Charles, Louisiana and many of the largest US refiners came into the storm's path.
Some refiners were hopeful they would find little damage from Rita.
