Lightning sparks blast, fire at oil refinery
WYNNEWOOD, Oklahoma (AP) — Flames and smoke poured into the sky Saturday over an oil refinery where lightning set off a fire and an explosion that was felt miles away, authorities said.
No injuries were reported and there were no immediate evacuation orders in the south-central Oklahoma town, said Mike Hancock, a spokesman for Wynnewood Refinery Co.
Flames and smoke boiled hundreds of feet into the air from two 80,000-gallon tanks in the Wynnewood Refinery complex, officials said.
Firefighters doused the area surrounding the tanks Saturday, Hancock said.
“Tank fires are pretty pesky fires. They’re easy to keep contained, but they’re hard to fight,” Hancock said. “It’s hard to estimate how long it will be. It can take a day or so to burn the product.”
The fire started Friday when lightning hit a tank containing naphtha, an unrefined form of gasoline, fire Chief Ken Moore said. City and company fire crews sprayed foam on the blaze and transferred naphtha out of the tank, but hours later the explosion — felt by residents of communities several miles away — spread the flames to a second tank, authorities said.
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Source: www.cnn.com
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