Final hours! Save up to 55% OFF InvestingProCLAIM SALE

Rural Texas chemical plant fire extinguished

Published 11/08/2023, 12:39 PM
Updated 11/09/2023, 03:50 AM

By Erwin Seba

HOUSTON (Reuters) -A fire at a rural chemical distribution plant northeast of Houston was extinguished by 4 p.m. CDT (2200 GMT), a county emergency services department said on Wednesday.

For much of the day, county officials told residents within one mile of Sound Resource Solutions located 61 miles (99 km) northeast of Houston to shelter in homes and businesses as crews sprayed foam to extinguish burning chemicals contained in trucks and buildings at the plant in a rural area near Shepherd, Texas.

Towns near the large black smoke plume rising from the fire also issued shelter-in-place orders for part of the day.

Emmitt Eldridge, San Jacinto County emergency management coordinator, said the fire began after a worker operating a forklift noticed chemicals leaking from a container at the plant.

"He then went to lift it up (using the forklift) and the worker then saw there was a fire," Eldridge said.

Eldridge said did not know if the fire was already burning before the container was lifted.

The forklift operator was injured in the fire and taken to a Houston hospital for treatment of burns, which were described as minor.

"He's going to be home with his family this evening," said Geoff Harfield, owner of Sound Resource Solutions.

Officials said about 19 people were working at the facility when the fire began shortly after 8 a.m. All had been accounted for.

Sound Resource Solutions blends, packages and distributes oilfield and other industrial chemicals including sulfuric acid, acetone and petrochemicals like xylene and toluene, according to the company's website.

U.S. Highway 59 was closed between Shepherd and Livingston, Texas because of the fire.

Rural Texas communities have been frequent sites of chemical plant explosions and fires.

In 2013, 15 people were killed and 160 injured in a fertilizer storage facility explosion in the town of West, Texas.

Four towns in east Texas were evacuated when a TPC Group butadiene plant exploded in Port Neches, Texas in 2018.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.