BP target of U.S. safety probe

WASHINGTON, March 9 (UPI) -- BP North America has two weeks to respond to allegations of serious safety violations at a refinery in Ohio, U.S. safety regulators said.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited BP North America with 42 alleged willful violations and 20 alleged serious violations at its refinery in Oregon, Ohio. The facility is owned jointly by BP and Canada's Husky Energy Inc.

"OSHA has found that BP often ignored or severely delayed fixing known hazards in its refineries," said U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis. "There is no excuse for taking chances with people's lives. BP must fix the hazards now."

OSHA inspectors said they found the potential for the release of flammable and explosive materials at the Ohio refinery exposed workers to serious risk of injury and death.

The refinery near Toledo was inspected 12 times by OSHA regulators since 1991. OSHA in September found BP in compliance but said it discovered violations not found covered in a 2006 settlement.

OSHA fined BP a record $87 million in October for safety violations that led to the 2005 explosion at a plant in Texas City, Texas, that killed 15 and injured 170.

Proposed penalties from the Toledo-area refinery are more than $3 million. BP has two weeks to respond.