A fire south of Houston in the Bacliffe area between LaMarque and Seabrook has been brought under control by several firefighting agencies -- at a decommissioned power plant.
Texas City Fire Department crews were called to the abandoned PHR Peakers Power Plant, owned by KV Land LLC, about 2:40 Sunday morning after the blaze erupted, apparently near a cooling tower, at the old plant along Highway 146 north of Kemah.
No injuries have been reported.
There have also been no reports of dangerous air quality in the area, according to environmental tests.
The fire was contained before noon, according to officials, but the area presents a unique challenge with flammable materials causing numerous possibilities for "hot spots" from which new fires could spring.
Residents nearby report getting warning messages on their cell phones
The crews were joined by other firefighters as the blaze moved to one cooling tower after another, causing all five to collapse after burning.
Some power lines were reported to be burning at the height of the blaze.
Smoke from the fire was spectacular, sending dark plumes into the Gulf air until firefighters got the blaze under control by the mid-morning.
The site is the former P. H. Robinson natural gas power plant that once utilized water from Dickinson Bay to provide power to the area, but was shut down and decommissioned after extensive damage from Hurricane Ike in 2008.
The Robinson Power Plant site was once the largest in Texas.
The plant overlooks the Dickinson Bay offshoot of Galveston Bay.
An investigation is already underway because the plant has been largely abandoned for years, after undergoing "remediation" years ago.
Fire departments who cooperated in fighting the fire include San Leon, Pearland, La Marque, Webster, Santa Fe, League City, and Alvin.