The spill sent hazmat crews to a Christy Place industrial site Wednesday.
SOUTH HOUSTON, Texas — A man working at a South Houston asphalt terminal was killed Wednesday after a spill involving tens of thousands of gallons of asphalt, according to city and county officials.
The fatal incident happened at the Martin Asphalt facility in the 300 block of Christy Place. Officials said the worker was buried under about 3 feet of asphalt. The Harris County Fire Marshal’s Office said recovery operations were complete Wednesday night, while the medical examiner’s office remained at the scene.
Emergency crews were sent to the industrial site Wednesday afternoon after reports of a hazmat incident. The response included fire personnel, hazmat crews and recovery units. Aerial images from SkyEye13 showed asphalt spread across the ground around large tanks, with one tank showing visible damage.
Martin Midstream Partners LP Chief Financial Officer Sharon Taylor said the victim had been recovered. Taylor said the cause had not been determined. The company also said emergency response steps were taken and local responders were notified after the incident at the South Houston asphalt terminal.
Officials said about 50,000 gallons of asphalt were involved. Images from the scene showed dark material near tanks and along parts of the surrounding industrial area. ABC13 images also showed what appeared to be asphalt in a canal or drainage area along a roadway, though officials had not released a full environmental assessment by Wednesday night.
The victim had not been publicly identified as of Thursday, April 30. Officials also had not said whether he was a Martin Asphalt employee, a contractor or a worker with another company. No final cause of the spill had been released, and officials had not announced whether any citations or enforcement actions were pending.
Martin Asphalt’s South Houston location is part of a larger network tied to Martin Midstream Partners and Martin Resource Management. The company lists asphalt products for road, roofing and specialty uses. The Christy Place site is in an industrial corridor where storage tanks and truck traffic are part of daily operations.
The next steps are expected to include identification of the worker, completion of the medical examiner’s findings and a review of equipment and site conditions. Investigators may examine tank integrity, transfer operations, maintenance records and worker location at the time of the spill. Officials had not set a public briefing as of Wednesday night.
The scene drew a large emergency presence and blocked access near the facility as crews worked through the recovery. Video from above showed responders staged around the site while dark asphalt covered a broad area near the damaged equipment. The investigation remained open Thursday.
Author note: Last updated April 30, 2026.