Texas [US], March 24 : A massive explosion took place at the Valero Refinery on Monday (local time) in Port Arthur, Texas, prompting authorities to issue an emergency alert for shelter-in-place.
On its official website, Port Arthur, Texas, said that it issued the alert to ensure the safety of all residents in the vicinity.
In the wake of the explosion, the official website of Port Arthur city issued an emergency shelter-in-place alert for Sabine Pass, Pleasure Island, South of Hwy 73 and from Stirlwell Boulevard west.
Citing local media, Reuters reported that the fire occured at the 380,000 barrel-per-day refinery late on Monday.
It cited CBS affiliate KFDM, which reported that Sheriff Zena Stephens said there are no reported injuries and the explosion was likely caused by an industrial heater.
This is a developing story.
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor