Fire breaks out at Texas chemical plant
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Xinhua, October 4, 2011
A massive industrial fire broke out at a chemical plant south of the city of Dallas in the U.S. state of Texas on Monday.
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A massive industrial fire broke out at a chemical plant south of the city of Dallas in the U.S. state of Texas on Monday. |
The fire broke out at about 11 a.m. local time at the Magnablend chemical processing plant and had prompted authorities to tell residents and students at a nearby elementary school to stay inside to avoid possibly dangerous gases that may be released in the fire, according to local media reports.
The fire was quickly spreading into a rail yard beside the plant, according to the newspaper Dallas Morning News. So far no injuries had been reported.
Firefighters are battling a huge fire after several explosions at the Magnablend chemical warehouse.
An official of the City of Waxahachie said that the flames and fumes from the blaze are so intense that fire crews have decided to let the fire burn itself out.
According to the company website, the company has three facilities in Waxahachie and the fire is at the Central Facility at 1601 state Highway 287 Bypass just east of Interstate 35E. The chemical company has 80,000 gallons of bulk liquid storage at the facility
As a result of the fire and smoke parts of Highway 287 have been shut down.
Fire departments from multiple cities have been called in to combat the blaze.
As firefighters, equipped with Hazmat suits, are battling the blazes, officials asked local residents in the surrounding areas to evacuate or stay indoors.
The Ellis County campus of Navarro College was evacuated immediately after the fire broke out. Residents of a nearby apartment complex, the Solon Place apartments, were also advised to evacuate.
Lisa Wheeler with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality said that the plant deals with ammonia, sulfuric, hydrochloric, nitric and phosphoric acids and mixes them for fertilizer and agricultural products. An official with federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is headed to the scene.
The fire has led to concern for surrounding areas, including the nearby Wedgeworth Elementary and other nearby buildings and residential homes.
All students and staff at Wedgeworth elementary, the Life School Red Oak Elementary and Secondary campuses, were first asked to remain inside in case of any dangerous gases that may be released in the fire.
After 12:00 a.m.local time, the students could be seen being escorted outside Wedgeworth elementary and being put onto buses. They were transported to safer places.
The company's website said that 85 employees working at the plant have been evacuated.
"My main concern when I got here was ensuring that everyone got out of the plant and were accounted for, everyone is safe at this time," said Donald Golden, with the company. "That was the best news I got so far."
Ellis County spokeswoman Diana Buckley told media that all the residents within an eight-block radius have been evacuated, adding that residents outside the immediate area who are located in the path of the smoke, which is moving north to northwest, should remain indoors, close their windows and turn off the air conditioning.
"We are in contact with the responders," Buckley said. "We're hoping to get an update from the Dallas hazmat team when they've been able to assess exactly what it is that's involved chemical- wise."
Dallas Fire-Rescue's hazardous material team has been called in to assist in battling the fire. "They are being deployed to assist with monitoring the environmental conditions," fire department spokesman Jason Evans said.
Meanwhile, Texas Division of Emergency Management, through the National Weather Service, has issued an emergency warning as a result of the fire, calling people in the area of Highway 287 and Interstate 35E near Waxahachie plant should evacuate immediately.
The county sheriff office also requests that people not drive to the area to observe the fire.
However, Magnablend chemical processing plant spokesman Donald Golden said that "so far everyone is safe at this time."
The evacuation of Wedgeworth Elementary School was "calm and orderly," she claimed, stressing that all students are safe and are being served lunch at the district's Ninth Grade Academy gymnasium. Parents may pick up their children in the foyer of the gym, she added.
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