Nearly 24 hours after a pipeline in Deer Park burst into flames, that fire was still intensely burning. The temperature from the fire was so intense it torched a nearby playground. Firefighters hosed down their equipment and nearby homes, but that wasn’t enough to fight back against the radiant heat. At least five homes were damaged. Officials announced Monday evening an SUV drove through a fence and hit the pipeline valve.
Energy Transfer owns the pipeline and after more than three hours, they were able to shut down two valves to cut off the natural gas fueling the fire.
Those two valves are twenty miles apart, according to Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo.
All the gas still in those lines has to burn off before the fire goes out.