Flare-up at chemical plant in Baytown caused by power outage
BAYTOWN, Texas (KTRK) -- A flare burning at a facility in Baytown has caught the attention of residents in the area.
Crews responded to reports of a possible fire at the Raven Chemical Plant located at 9520 East Freeway at 4:50 a.m.
WATCH: ABC13 viewer catches flare at chemical plant in Baytown
The company told ABC13 the flare was caused by a power outage at the facility.
Many residents reported hearing a loud noise and then seeing smoke and a fire at the facility. According to the CenterPoint Outage tracker, about 1,000 people in the area were without power during the incident, but power has since been restored.
WATCH: Neighbors reported hearing a loud noise that shook their windows
Officials said there are no injuries and no threats to the public.
Raven Butene facility released the following statement in regards to the flare:
Today at 4:50 a.m. local time, a regional system-wide power outage was experienced at the Raven Butene-1, LLC facility, a midstream processing facility located here. As a result of the power outage, the facility's emergency system was activated, and the production units were intentionally depressurized by a ground flare that was visible to people in the area and passersby. The Baytown Fire Department and Emergency Response were on site to monitor this standard emergency procedure.
The ground flare lasted for approximately 45 minutes at which time the gas pressurization levels returned to normal. The "all clear" was called at 7:45 a.m. There were no injuries and no property damage caused by this standard emergency procedure, and there were no offsite impacts. Power has been restored and the facility is working to return to regular operations.
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