Evacuation orders were issued in La Porte after a large pipeline fire erupted Monday morning.
The La Porte Fire Department was dispatched to a fire in the 8700 block of Spencer Highway around 9:55 a.m. Several houses and a burned vehicle could be seen from helicopter footage at the scene. The fire was not contained and continued burning nearly two hours after alerts were first issued.
San Jacinto College students were urged to shelter in place until an all-clear is provided. There is no fire currently on campus, according to the San Jacinto College Office of Emergency Management.
A spokesperson for the La Porte Office of Emergency Management said residents between Luella and Canada roads need to evacuate and those on Spencer and Freemont are urged to go west. It wasn’t immediately clear who owned the pipeline.
Residents near the area are likely to be evacuated because of power loss. An area surrounding Wal-Mart and H-E-B is blocked off to traffic, according to the Deer Park Office of Emergency Management.
Anna Ritter-Lewis, a La Porte resident said she had taken a friend to the eye doctor at Walmart. They were standing by the door because they had just walked in when the explosion happened.
“They immediately escorted everyone to the back and out through the back of Walmart and then had us walk across East Street to the HEB,” Ritter-Lewis said.
“They evacuated us all to the Jimmy Burke center in Deer Park,” she said. “They would not allow us to get our vehicles or anything.”
SCHOOLS MONITORING FIRE
A La Porte Independent School District campus near the fire is under a modified shelter-in-place. The more than 500 students at Heritage Elementary School are kept inside and outdoor activities are being cancelled.
“We’re taking all precautions, safety and security are our top priority,” Adam Holland, a spokesperson for La Porte ISD said. “Our kiddos are safe, and we’re trying the best we can to proceed as we normally would.”
The school district will not be releasing students early. That could change if things get worse, he said.
“Please be assured that all students are safe,” the school district wrote on social media.
Deer Park Independent School District is not sheltering in place but canceled outdoor activities for the remainder of the school day. The school district will continue monitoring the fire, Matt Lucas, a spokesperson for the school district said.
“Unified Command is established with Deer Park handling the west side and La Porte handling the east,” according to the office. “A mobile command post is set up at East Blvd. and Spencer Hwy. HC Pollution Control is on scene.”
Lucio Vasquez contributed to this report.
This is a developing story.