(La Porte) A massive gas pipeline fire in suburban Houston sent a giant plume of fire into the air for several hours Monday as first responders evacuated a surrounding neighborhood where some homes caught fire.
The fire involving a 20-inch (half-meter) pipeline carrying natural gas liquids is expected to self-extinguish, according to its operator, Dallas-based Energy Transfer. The company said the gas flow has been cut off, but the fire should self-extinguish.
The fire started at 9:55 a.m. after an explosion rocked nearby homes in Deer Park and La Porte, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southeast of downtown Houston, which has long been the energy capital of the United States.
“All of a sudden we hear this loud bang, and then I see something bright, like orange, coming from our back door that’s outside,” said Geselle Melina Guerra, 25, a La Porte resident. She and her boyfriend live in a mobile home in the evacuation zone. They were having breakfast when they heard the explosion around 9:30 a.m.
PHOTO BRETT COOMER, ASSOCIATED PRESS
People in nearby schools were asked to shelter in place as law enforcement blocked off a large area.
M’s boyfriendme Guerra, Jairo Sanchez, 26, woke his brother and they ran to their car.
“I was panicking, pacing around the living room, not really knowing what to do or what was going on. I thought maybe it was a plane that had crashed near our house,” M said.me War.
More questions
City of La Porte spokeswoman Lee Woodward told KTRK-TV they did not know to what extent the facility would be closed. People at nearby schools were asked to shelter in place as law enforcement blocked off a large area.
At least one natural gas pipeline and one hazardous liquids pipeline run through the fire zone, according to U.S. Department of Transportation geographic data. Another pipeline runs diagonally through a nearby residential neighborhood along the Spencer Freeway, which runs through the suburbs of Deer Park and La Porte.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known. Houston is the petrochemical heartland of the United States, home to a cluster of refineries, factories and thousands of miles of pipelines.
Explosions and fires are a recurring theme for residents of Texas’ largest city, often raising questions about the adequacy of industry plans to protect the public and the environment.
Video footage from KTRK-TV showed a park near the fire was damaged and firefighters were pouring water on adjacent homes. By noon, at least two homes appeared to be on fire, with smoke billowing from their roofs. Several businesses are nearby, including a Walmart.
PHOTO BRETT COOMER, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Houston is the petrochemical heartland of the United States, home to a cluster of refineries, factories and thousands of miles of pipelines.
Mr. Sanchez said he and his relatives were used to evacuations because they live near factories near the highway. But in the 10 years he had lived there, he had never witnessed an explosion.
“We just drove as far as we could because we didn’t know what was going on,” said Mr. Sanchez, who was in a car parked at a gas station near his university.
Authorities have ordered residents of the Brookglen neighborhood near the fire to evacuate, M said.me Woodward in an email.
“Please avoid the area and follow the instructions of law enforcement. Further details will be released as they become available,” Mr.me Woodward.
Several high-voltage power lines are near the fire. The website PowerOutage.us said several thousand customers were without power in Harris County.
Associated Press writer Christopher L. Keller contributed to this report from Albuquerque, New Mexico.