Pipeline fire near Houston subsides, but still burns – WSVN 7News

DEER PARK, Texas (AP) — A fire that loomed over a southeastern Houston suburb extinguished Tuesday but continued to burn after a pipeline explosion that occurred when a vehicle drove through a fence along a parking lot and struck an above-ground valve, officials said.

“Progress has been made as emergency crews worked through the night. The fire is significantly reduced,” according to a statement from Deer Park. The city said Energy Transfer, the Dallas-based owner of the pipeline, expects the fire to burn itself out Tuesday.

City officials said police and FBI agents found no initial evidence to suggest a coordinated or terrorist attack and said it “appears to be an isolated incident,” but did not provide details on how they reached that conclusion.

Investigators were trying to learn more about the driver of the sport utility vehicle. The vehicle was engulfed in an explosion that scorched a large area, downed nearby power lines, melted playground equipment and set nearby homes on fire. More than 24 hours after the explosion, the driver had yet to be publicly identified.

The valve, which was apparently protected by chain-link fencing topped with razor wire, is located in a long grassy corridor with power lines running through it. Several pipelines run underground. A housing development is on one side of the corridor; a Walmart is on the other. Officials say the driver drove through a fence along the Walmart parking lot and across a grassy strip of road before hitting the valve.

Authorities did not provide any information on the driver’s condition. Deer Park spokeswoman Kaitlyn Bluejacket said four people were injured, but did not provide details on the severity of the injuries. Authorities said one firefighter suffered minor injuries.

The roaring fire sent orange flames and then black smoke hundreds of feet into the air, prompting authorities to evacuate nearly 1,000 homes and order people in nearby schools to shelter in place. By Tuesday, the city of La Porte said it had slightly reduced the evacuation area south of the fire but did not say how many people had been affected.

Operators shut off the flow of natural gas fluids after an explosion rocked homes and businesses in Deer Park and the neighboring suburb of La Porte shortly before 10 a.m. Monday. But Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said 20 miles (32 kilometers) of pipeline stretched between two closed valves, and any chemicals inside had to burn off before the fire stopped.

Robert Hall, senior adviser at the nonprofit Pipeline Safety Trust, said it was not surprising it took more than a day for the material to stop burning.

“We’re talking about 20-inch-diameter pipelines with miles between valves, so it takes a long time for something like that to burn down,” Hall said.

The fire was so intense that the only thing firefighters could do was use ladder trucks to extinguish nearby houses that began to smoke from the heat radiation.

Houston, Texas’ largest city, is the nation’s petrochemical heartland, home to a cluster of refineries and plants and thousands of miles of pipelines. Explosions and fires are common sights, some of them deadly, raising repeated questions about the industry’s efforts to protect the public and the environment.

Hall, who previously oversaw pipeline and hazardous materials investigations for the National Transportation Safety Board, said there are few regulations governing the location of pipelines near homes and businesses.

“It’s becoming a very localized issue, community by community,” said Hall, who added that some jurisdictions require the use of bollards — solid pipes filled with concrete — to prevent vehicles from hitting vulnerable infrastructure.

Energy Transfer did not immediately respond Tuesday to a question about precautions being taken near its valve.

Hall said regulations introduced in 2022 to reduce deaths and environmental damage caused by pipeline ruptures were aimed at gas pipelines, not those that carry liquids, and would not apply to the Texas pipeline. He added that many of the new safety rules that were introduced do not apply retroactively to pipelines that have already been built.

Anna Lewis, who was entering the Walmart when the explosion occurred, said it “sounded like a bomb went off.” She said everyone inside was rushed to the back of the store and then driven across the street to a grocery store, where they were then bused to a community center.

“It scared me,” she said. “You really don’t know what to do when it happens.”

Geselle Melina Guerra heard the explosion while eating breakfast with her boyfriend in their mobile home.

“All of a sudden we heard a loud bang and then I saw something bright, like orange, coming from outside our back door, which is outside,” said Guerra, who lives in the evacuation area.

According to Deer Park officials, both Energy Transfer and Harris County Pollution Control monitor air quality in the area and have not detected any health concerns.

The Texas Railroad Commission, which regulates oil and gas in the state, said Tuesday that its safety inspectors will enter the mine site as soon as it is safe to do so to begin an investigation.