Massive fire rages at decommissioned Texas power plant, prompting massive smoke plume and public safety alert.
A large fire broke out on Sunday morning at the PHR Peakers power plant in Texas City, just outside of Houston's Galveston County limits. Firefighters from multiple departments battled to control the flames, which were fueled by a lack of water supply due to the property having been decommissioned.
The fire started at around 2:30 am and was eventually brought under control but not before it spread across several acres. Despite air monitoring indicating safe conditions, residents in nearby neighborhoods received a public safety alert urging them to avoid smoke and potentially hazardous situations. However, officials stated that air quality was deemed safe by Texas City firefighters.
According to Assistant Chief Matthew Wyatt of the Texas City Fire Department, flames grew rapidly due to the absence of any water supply on the property. The team managed to create two master streams using a pony pump located in a nearby ditch, ultimately allowing them to contain and extinguish the fire.
Several structures at the site had reportedly collapsed by the time the fire was brought under control, including what appeared to be cooling towers. Meanwhile, smoke from the blaze rose over Texas City and surrounding areas before drifting northeast across Galveston Bay, visible on weather radar.
Despite initial concerns that embers might spread to nearby neighborhoods, officials reported no indications of arson or anyone being present at the site when the fire started. The cause of the blaze remains under investigation until it is fully extinguished.
The incident serves as a reminder of the importance of maintaining safety protocols for decommissioned properties and the potential risks associated with unattended industrial sites.
A large fire broke out on Sunday morning at the PHR Peakers power plant in Texas City, just outside of Houston's Galveston County limits. Firefighters from multiple departments battled to control the flames, which were fueled by a lack of water supply due to the property having been decommissioned.
The fire started at around 2:30 am and was eventually brought under control but not before it spread across several acres. Despite air monitoring indicating safe conditions, residents in nearby neighborhoods received a public safety alert urging them to avoid smoke and potentially hazardous situations. However, officials stated that air quality was deemed safe by Texas City firefighters.
According to Assistant Chief Matthew Wyatt of the Texas City Fire Department, flames grew rapidly due to the absence of any water supply on the property. The team managed to create two master streams using a pony pump located in a nearby ditch, ultimately allowing them to contain and extinguish the fire.
Several structures at the site had reportedly collapsed by the time the fire was brought under control, including what appeared to be cooling towers. Meanwhile, smoke from the blaze rose over Texas City and surrounding areas before drifting northeast across Galveston Bay, visible on weather radar.
Despite initial concerns that embers might spread to nearby neighborhoods, officials reported no indications of arson or anyone being present at the site when the fire started. The cause of the blaze remains under investigation until it is fully extinguished.
The incident serves as a reminder of the importance of maintaining safety protocols for decommissioned properties and the potential risks associated with unattended industrial sites.
just heard about that massive fire at the power plant in Texas City 
can u imagine a fire raging for hours without water supply? 
it's like a nightmare scenario! 
firefighters were really brave battling those flames, especially when they're running low on supplies 
thankfully, no one got hurt and air quality is safe...for now 
but seriously, this is a wake-up call for decommissioned properties & industrial sites to stay vigilant & follow safety protocols 
️ and saw this video of a Japanese skyscraper's rooftop garden, which is literally like a tropical oasis in the middle of the city 
. I wonder if they have those kinds of gardens in Texas too... 
. But, like, accidents happen, and it's good that the firefighters were able to contain the blaze... 
I mean, who expects a fire to break out on a site that's already been decommissioned? 
It's like they didn't think about the potential risks of having an old industrial area just sitting there.
I mean, if there wasn't even a water supply available... it's like they just left everything as is without any precautions. 
You can see on those weather radar images how it spread out across Galveston Bay... it's crazy to think about how easily something like that could have gotten out of control.
. We should definitely take away from this incident the importance of maintaining safety standards at decommissioned sites. 
. I mean, who starts a fire at an old power plant and then expects everyone else to be safe? It's like, come on, people! Be responsible for your own messes. And can we talk about the layout of this whole situation? Like, how did it even spread that far without anyone noticing? The fact that they had to create two master streams using a pony pump from a nearby ditch is just... wow. That's some top-notch firefighting skills right there 
. Anyway, I'm glad no one got hurt and the fire was eventually brought under control, but still, it's like, basic safety protocols, people! 
This is just crazy! Like, you can't even imagine what's going on when you hear about a massive fire at an old power plant that was already shut down 
. And the fact that it spread across several acres and collapsed structures? Unreal 
. It's a good thing officials were able to respond quickly and contain the damage.
. It's all about prioritizing public safety, you know? 
. Like, shouldn't we be able to trust that old power plants are properly secured and maintained? I know they're supposed to be decommissioned for a reason, but it seems like some people just don't follow through on their responsibilities.
. And I'm not sure why officials thought air quality was safe at first? Did they not take the public safety alert seriously enough? Anyway, it's just another reminder of how we need to be more vigilant about maintaining old infrastructure and taking care of our environment.
. i guess they managed to do their job well and brought it under control eventually.
. its just one of those things that can happen if we're not careful. lets all hope the investigation finds out what happened and we learn from this incident 
apparently 70% of industrial fires happen when maintenance is neglected. like, we gotta keep an eye out for those folks and make sure they're following safety protocols... can't stress this enough! 
it's crazy how long these things just sit there with no one watching over them. maybe it's a good opportunity for us to reevaluate our priorities when it comes to industrial sites and public safety... food for thought, right? 
. I hope they figure out what caused the fire soon so we can all breathe a sigh of relief 
! Anyway, it's just another reminder to stay vigilant and look out for each other when it comes to safety concerns around us 
.
anyway, fingers crossed they find out what caused it soon