DEER PARK, Texas – A fire at the Shell Deer Park Chemical Plant caused a sleepless night for some residents in the area.
The fire, which broke out Friday afternoon, was brought under control.
9 contractors released from hospital after Shell Chemical Plant fire in Deer Park
Neighbors said loud rumblings from flares at the plant kept them up overnight and there was still white smoke in the air the following day.
On Friday, large flames and clouds of black smoke could be seen coming from the plant. Around 3 p.m. the fire broke out. Nine contractors were evaluated at the hospital but have since been released.
Neighbors like John Hollywood said they heard a loud noise coming from the plant throughout the night into Saturday morning.
“We’ve been getting a high noise like a jet engine running from the flares. Probably at about 3 (a.m.) I called the Deer Park Police Department complaining about the noise,” he said.
Hollywood said neighbors weren’t notified about what the noise was, but police later told him about the flares.
The noise stopped around 4 a.m., he said.
On Saturday, the City of Deer Park Office of Emergency Management also announced on Facebook the fire had been extinguished.
Emergency responders worked for hours to get the fire under control. Shell officials said the fire started while the Olefins unit was undergoing routine maintenance. It ignited cracked heavy gas oil, cracked light oil and gasoline.
Officials said they did not detect any dangerous chemicals, and a shelter in place order was not issued. Shell is still working to find out what caused the fire.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality launched an emergency response page for those wishing to get more information about response to the fire. Click here for more information.
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