Trujillo & Winnick LLP Files Amended Class Action Over El Segundo Refinery Fire

Fourteen plaintiffs allege the October 2025 El Segundo refinery fire deposited soot, ash, and oily residue on their property. No class has been certified.

LOS ANGELES, CA, UNITED STATES, September 16, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Trujillo & Winnick LLP has filed a first amended class action complaint on behalf of fourteen plaintiffs arising from the October 2, 2025 fire at the El Segundo refinery operated by Chevron U.S.A. Inc.

The amended complaint was filed September 15, 2026 as Document 38 in Coffey v. Chevron U.S.A. Inc., et al., Case No. 2:25-cv-09699, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. It names Chevron U.S.A. Inc. and Chevron Corporation as defendants. All statements below about the case are drawn from that filed court document.

The fire was widely reported, including by ABC7 Los Angeles in “Massive fire erupts at Chevron refinery in El Segundo,” published October 3, 2025 (https://abc7.com/post/explosion-reported-chevrons-el-segundo-refinery/17927991/).

According to the amended complaint, on the night of October 2, 2025, a section of piping at the refinery ruptured and released flammable process material that ignited and burned into the morning of October 3. The complaint alleges that the fire sent soot, ash, and oily residue over the surrounding South Bay communities and that the residue settled on the plaintiffs’ homes, vehicles, and vessels. The complaint alleges deficiencies in inspection and corrosion-management practices and seeks relief for property damage, interference with the use and enjoyment of property, and abatement of remaining deposits.

The amended complaint asserts negligence, premises liability, strict liability, private nuisance, public nuisance, trespass to land, and trespass to chattels. Not every claim is asserted against every defendant. The complaint states that no personal-injury cause of action is asserted.

The proposed classes

As pleaded in Document 38, the amended complaint proposes a Real Property Class of persons and entities that, during October 2-3, 2025, owned real property in a defined area or held a leasehold or other lawful possessory right to occupy real property there. It also proposes a Personal Property Class of persons and entities that, during the same period, owned or lawfully possessed a motor vehicle, marine vessel, or other tangible personal property located outdoors in that area.

The complaint defines that area as every location outside the refinery within ten statute miles, measured horizontally, of the nearest point on the outer boundary of the refinery property as it existed on October 2, 2025. As pleaded, the area is not a ring around the refinery: it extends in every direction and includes the communities closest to it.

As pleaded, membership does not depend on proof of deposition, damage, or loss, and membership in the Personal Property Class turns on where the property was, not on where its owner receives mail.

These descriptions summarize the pleading. The complaint’s own definitions and subclasses control, and the complaint describes the ten-mile area as a pleading-stage boundary that plaintiffs will propose to refine before certification.

Case status

No class has been certified. Class certification requires a court order, and inclusion in a proposed class does not establish liability or an entitlement to recovery. This release is not a court-approved class notice.

The amended complaint and case information are available at https://tru-win.com/cases/chevron/. Information may be submitted for attorney review at https://chevronrefinerycase.com/. Submitting information does not create an attorney-client relationship; representation begins only after a written engagement agreement.

About Trujillo & Winnick LLP

Trujillo & Winnick LLP is a Los Angeles plaintiff-side civil litigation firm led by managing partner Anthony W. Trujillo (California State Bar No. 248860). The firm represents the plaintiffs in this action, and Anthony W. Trujillo and Carlos J. Rosario (California State Bar No. 280678) are counsel for plaintiffs.

Media contact: Carlos J. Rosario, Esq., Trujillo & Winnick LLP, 6080 Center Drive, Suite 600, Los Angeles, CA 90045; (310) 870-1719; cr@tru-win.com.

Attorney Advertising. Responsible attorney: Anthony W. Trujillo, California State Bar No. 248860, Trujillo & Winnick LLP, Los Angeles, California. This release describes allegations in pending litigation, sourced to Document 38 in Case No. 2:25-cv-09699. All allegations are subject to proof and have not been adjudicated. No court has determined liability or damages. Past results do not guarantee similar outcomes.

Anthony W. Trujillo
Trujillo & Winnick LLP
+1 310-870-1719
at@tru-win.com

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