Officials in a Houston suburb said Thursday that human remains were found inside an SUV that hit an aboveground valve on a pipeline, sparking a fire that has been burning for four days.
Authorities were able to access the site around 7 a.m. on Sept. 19 as the fire subsided, the City of Deer Park, Texas, announced in a statement, allowing them to remove the white SUV associated with the incident.
“Once removed, Harris County Medical Examiners were able to process the vehicle,” the statement said. “During the processing, they were able to recover and remove human remains. They will now begin working through their identification process, which will take some time.”
The discovery has led to a criminal investigation that remains ongoing, according to the statement, with limited information being released until it concludes.
Energy Transfer, the Dallas-based owner of the pipeline, was able to access the grounds to begin work after the SUV was removed, the release said, adding that citizens and media were urged to remain at a safe distance from the area so those working in and around the heavy equipment could do so safely and without distractions.
The impact of the collision sparked the massive fire, which produced towering flames and thick black smoke visible from miles away, forcing local officials to evacuate nearly 1,000 homes and impose shelter-in-place orders at nearby schools.
Some residents expressed frustration over being forced to leave immediately and not being given any timeline for when they would be able to return.
Energy Transfer initially called the collision an accident. Preliminary investigations by local police and FBI agents found no signs of foul play or terrorism, but the exact cause of the driver’s actions remains a part of the investigation.
As the fire continues to burn, Energy Transfer crews are installing specialized isolation equipment to cut off the damaged section of the pipeline and extinguish the flames. Officials have said that once the pipeline is sealed and purged with nitrogen, the fire should burn out within hours. Officials said they didn’t expect it to be extinguished until sometime Thursday evening.
Residents of Deer Park and neighboring LaPorte were primarily impacted by the fire. Power outages affected hundreds of homes, and power was mostly restored by Wednesday afternoon. Evacuated residents were being allowed to return home starting Wednesday evening.
Officials have assured the public that air quality monitoring has shown no immediate danger, despite the dark clouds of smoke produced by the fire. However, the incident has raised concerns about safety protocols in Houston’s petrochemical corridor, where fires at refineries and pipelines are not uncommon.
