Cause of Thursday tank battery blaze undetermined

What caused a rather large and intense tank battery fire late last Thursday in a relatively remote part of Lavaca County remains a mystery, local fire officials reported this week.

Thankfully, they also reported, no injuries were suffered when the tanks first caught fire, nor in the process of finally putting that fire out.

Moulton Fire Chief Tim Koncaba said his department was notified of a blaze at an oilfield property out in the county near the Old Moulton community at 9:17 p.m. Thursday, July 21.

Koncaba gave an exact address of 3762 Lavaca County Road 285, which is located about 4½ miles from City Hall, slightly more than a mile down that county road when one turns north off FM 1680 at Old Moulton.

Firemen arrived to find six tanks fully engulf, the flames intensely hot. Lavaca County Emergency Management Coordinator Egon Barthels got called to the scene as well, firemen concerned they might need to evacuate what few people lived nearby.

Just a half dozen or so homes are located within the vicinity. Barthels said the fire was burning so hot, you could feel it from a good 200 yards off.

Six firetrucks and 14 men answered the call from the Moulton Volunteer Fire Department, Koncaba reported. Although controlling the blaze as best they could, they would not get it fully extinguished until well after midnight, early the next day.

The cause of the fire was listed as “uncertain” as of press time.

Agencies assisting the Moulton VFD were Moulton Police Department, Lavaca County Sheriff’s Office, Lavaca County OEM, Lavaca County EMS, Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) District Coordinator Ernie Paiz out of Victoria, Railroad Commission of Texas and the National Weather Service.

Employees with Ranger Oil Company were also on scene, Koncaba reported. 

Barthel’s issued two CODERED warnings regarding the tank fires that day. The first warned people away. “Please avoid the area,” he wrote, “and stay clear of emergency vehicles.”

It also has a health advisory: “If you are nearby, please consider sheltering in place. If you are north/northwest of the location and have respiratory predispositions, please take proper precautions.”

His final update came early Friday morning.

“The tank battery fire was extinguished,” he said. “The scene has been deemed safe, but remediation continues. Thank you again, Chief Koncaba and Moulton Fire Department for a job well done."