Evacuation ends after Michigan fuel facility fire

VIENNA TOWNSHIP, Mich. — A fire at a Michigan fuel storage facility that caused several oil barrels to explode and prompted area evacuations may have started near an electric meter, authorities said Wednesday.

Clio Assistant Fire Chief Kerry Paulson says the mandatory evacuation order, which displaced roughly 1,000 residents, was lifted Wednesday afternoon within a two-mile radius around the White Oil Co. facility about 65 miles north of Detroit. He said a crew of six to eight firefighters and a truck shooting flame-retardant foam overnight battled the blaze that had engulfed two buildings.

Paulson said the fire was mostly out Wednesday.

Tuesday afternoon, an employee reported a small fire at an electrical meter outside one of the buildings, Paulson said. That person was among a handful of people at the plant when the fire broke out and shot heavy plumes of black smoke into the air.

Fifty-gallon oil drums and industrial solvents were inside the buildings at the time and some of them exploded, shooting the barrels 50 feet in the air, authorities said. One of the flaming barrels ignited an adjacent building and officials planned to raze both buildings Wednesday.

Paulson said at least 25 fire departments and more than 100 firefighters battled the blaze. Two of those firefighters received minor injuries and the fire remains under investigation.

The Environmental Protection Agency says there are currently no health risks associated with the fire. However, the EPA advised those in the area to keep their windows closed.

Associated Press Writer David Aguilar in Detroit contributed to this report.