This area is located on Spencer Highway, near East Boulevard. Please avoid this area.
LA PORTE, Texas — Crews are responding to a massive pipeline fire in the Deer Park area, according to the Office of Emergency Management.
According to the city of La Porte, it started just before 10 a.m. on Spencer Highway near East Boulevard, near a Walmart and an HEB.
Traffic is closed in the area. Please avoid the area and change route.
What we know now
- Pipeline fire breaks out along Spencer Highway near East Boulevard
- Liquefied natural gas burns in Energy Transfer pipeline
- No timetable for putting out the fire
- Brookglen neighborhood evacuated
- Shelter in place for La Porte ISD. San Jacinto College is closed for the day
- East Harris County Activity Center to Serve as Shelter and Cooling Center
- The lack of wind helps prevent fire and smoke from spreading.
Harris County Commissioner Adrian Garcia said the pipeline runs along the city limits between Deer Park and La Porte, so emergency responders from both cities are responding to the fire.
“There are about 350 homes that are very close to the point of the fire and so there is an evacuation order in effect,” Garcia said.
RELATED: Deer Park images and video show pipeline fire
According to the Harris County Judge’s Office, Deer Park Mayor Jerry Mouton Jr. said the company that owns the pipeline is Energy Transfer and that it is a natural gas line on fire.
Energy Transfer said the incident occurred at a distribution station and involved a 20-inch liquefied natural gas pipeline. They added that the line had been isolated so that the residual product could self-combust.
The biggest risk right now, Mouton said, is the constant heat generated by the fire. Energy Transfer has lowered the pipeline pressure from 1,400 pounds per square inch to 200 pounds per square inch to reduce the intensity of the fire.
KHOU 11 Investigates’ Jeremy Rogalski said there are a series of pipelines that run on an easement in the area where the fire is located. Each pipeline has a different hazardous material marker. These include oil, methanol, dry gas as well as ethane.
Brookglen Neighborhood Evacuated
Firefighters are recommending an evacuation between Luella and Canada in the Brookglen neighborhood.
According to the Deer Park Office of Emergency Management, residents near the fire will likely be evacuated due to a power outage. SETRAC is working on a possible evacuation of a nearby long-term care facility.
RELATED: Deer Park pipeline fire impacts nearby La Porte; schools remain on lockdown
The East Harris County Activity Center, located at 7340 Spencer Hwy in Pasadena, has been set up as an evacuation shelter and cooling center for those affected by the fire.
“It’s devastating to see this in my backyard,” one resident told KHOU 11 reporter Troy Kless.
Shelter in place at La Porte ISD
La Porte ISD reports all students are safe and sheltering in place.
Deer Park ISD reports none of its schools were affected by the pipeline fire.
Air quality in case of pipeline fire
According to KHOU 11 Meteorologist Pat Cavlin, the winds are light, so the flames are heading skyward, as is the smoke. That should help contain the flames.
San Jacinto College Closes for the Day
According to the San Jacinto College Office of Emergency Management, the lockdown has been lifted on the central campus. The campus will be closed for the remainder of the day. There will be no classes or activities. School officials said employees on the central campus should plan to work remotely today.
Images taken from Air 11 show the fire coming from the pipeline with a charred vehicle nearby. A ray of charred grass can also be seen from a grass fire started by the explosion.
Aerial views also showed flames from the grass fire near the fences of nearby homes.
Power outage at CenterPoint
More than 4,000 customers are reported to be without power due to the pipeline fire. Here is a statement from CenterPoint Energy:
“CenterPoint Energy is monitoring the incident on Spencer Highway in LaPorte, which is not related to the company’s natural gas operations or equipment. We are also cooperating with first responders. With safety as our priority, the public should avoid the area until further notice from local emergency authorities. When it is safe to do so, our electric crews will be in the area to assess the damage to our transmission and distribution power lines, poles and equipment and will begin restoring service to affected customers as safely and expeditiously as possible.”
