BP PLC is facing the first four of the 48,000 lawsuits filed against them Wednesday due to alleged release of toxic chemicals which harmed nearby residents.

The four lawsuits claim that BP PLC's Texas refinery released toxic gas into the atmosphere for several weeks without warning. As a result, neighbors and nearby residents reportedly suffered from various ailments. The reported ailments include "itchy eyes, runny noses and temporary respiratory and stomach ailments," says Bloomberg.

According to Euro News, the Texas refinery released gases into the atmosphere for 40 days in 2010. The gas release included 17,000 pounds of benzene. Benzene is a colorless, flammable liquid with a sweet odor. According to Cancer.org, the gas is known to cause cancer, based on evidence from both human and animal studies.

However, BP PLC is saying that there were no harms associated with the toxic gas release in 2010.

"Neither the community air-monitoring network nor the BP fence-line monitors showed elevated readings during April and May 2010 and we do not believe that any negative health impacts resulted from flaring at BP's Texas City refinery during this period," read the statement.

The lawsuits, filed by four residents are claiming for $200,000 each in actual damages. An additional $10 billion in punitive damages was also claimed. Plaintiffs declared that the payment for the latter will be donated to charity.

BP PLC, also known as British Petroleum is a London-based petrochemical corporation. It has become one of the biggest oil companies in the world since it merged with US-based Amoco Corporation in 1998.

Apart from over 40,000 more impending lawsuits in Texas, the company is also facing lawsuits in New Orleans later this month. The hearing will be the second installment of a case filed against them for the 2010 Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and the rupture of their Macondo oil well in the US Gulf of Mexico.

On the other hand, BP PLC's Texas refinery has already been sold to Marathon Petroleum Corp. last October. The same refinery exploded in 2005 which killed a total of 15 workers.