On Friday, the sky filled with thick black smoke which could be seen from miles away, following an enormous explosion and fire at the Shell refinery plant in Deer Park, Texas.
The incident occurred just before 3 pm.
“At approximately 2:56 PM CST, a fire started at Shell’s Deer Park Chemicals facility in the olefins unit. The ignited product includes cracked heavy gas oil, cracked light gas oil and gasoline. No injuries have been reported, though a small number of contract employees who were exposed to product are undergoing medical evaluation as a precaution,” Shell Deer Park Chemicals posted on Facebook.
“Emergency responders are on scene and working to put out the fire. The cause of the fire will be the subject of a future investigation, and our immediate priorities remain the safety of people and the environment,” the statement added.
Watch footage of the blaze:
According to FOX26Houston, “An Environmental Duty Representative at Shell Deer Park shared this statement: ‘We are currently experiencing fire within one of our units. The incident is being handled within the boundaries of this facility and there is no threat to the community from this incident. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.’”
Fox News reported:
As of 7 p.m. Friday, the fire was contained and reported to be diminishing. All employees at the facility have been accounted for.
Aerial pictures showed flames shooting from the facility’s smokestacks and huge billows of black smoke.
Deer Park International School District and Office of Emergency Management officials said there was no shelter-in-place order due to wind blowing in the opposite direction of Deer Park.
The fire took up so much space in the sky that it was visible on National Weather Service’s radar, the organization reported.
Watch the FOX26Houston report:
