An explosion sparked a large fire at a chemical plant in Shepherd, Texas, sending huge plumes of black smoke into the sky.
Fire prompted the evacuation of a private school at 1127 Farm-to-Market Road; authorities issued a shelter-in-place warning
Shelter-in-place order issued after chemical plant explosion in Shepherd, Texas; smoke visible for milespic.twitter.com/0krc7baQlk
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The plant explosion and subsequent chemical fire occurred Wednesday morning, the San Jacinto County Office of Emergency Management reported.
The fire prompted the evacuation of a private school at 1127 Farm-to-Market Road and authorities issued a shelter-in-place warning for a 5-mile radius.
Due to the explosion, Highway 59 was closed. The Polk County Office of Emergency Management said the plume of smoke from the explosion was headed toward the Livingston area and advised locals to take shelter in their homes or wherever they are and turn off heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems in homes and businesses “immediately.”
“At this time, the effects of the chemical in the air are unknown,” Polk County authorities were quoted.
The Livingston Police Department urged its residents and employees to shelter in place and turn off air conditioning systems until further notice.