Hobbled oil refineries and damaged fuel facilities along the Gulf Coast of Texas from Tropical storm Harvey have released more than two million pounds of dangerous chemicals into the air this week, adding new health threats to Houston’s already considerable woes. The big spike in releases, which include carcinogenic benzene and nitrogen oxide, will add an environmental and long-term health risk to the region that's struggling with the massive flooding that Harvey has brought to the country’s energy capital, according to environmental watchdogs... “It’s adding to the cancer risk to the community and well as respiratory problems,” said Luke Metzger, director of Environment Texas... The storm has cut power to nearly 300,000 people in Texas, forced 13 refineries to shut down and caused another five to ramp down operations... Chemical maker Chevron Phillips reported the largest pollutant release. The company estimated it had sent more than 766,000 pounds of chemicals to its flare for burning as it shut its Baytown plant down because of the storm, it said in a TCEQ filing... The American Petroleum Institute noted that preparing refineries for such an unprecedented storm was a complex process, and it said the industry was “committed to the safety of our workers and the community and the protection of human health and the environment.”