A fire broke out July 9 at a gas plant in Medford, Oklahoma, prompting the closures of nearby roads and evacuations of residents in neighboring areas.
Medford — a town of 932 people, according to the 2020 census — sits about 79.2 miles away from Wichita, Kansas.
Before the fire broke out, there were reports of an unconfirmed explosion at the natural gas fractionation facility.
Fractionation is a process in gas processing plants where hydrocarbon mixtures in natural gas are separated to produce products such as ethane, propane, butane, pentanes and natural gasoline.
However, whether such an explosion caused the fire remains uncertain, NBC News reported.
The plant was operated by natural gas liquids corporation ONEOK.
Michael and Brittany Stone captured this video of an explosion in Medford, Oklahoma, near the Kansas border. This gas plant fire caused evacuations and road closures #KWCH12 pic.twitter.com/V8Cy8FbYfM
— KWCH Eyewitness News (@KWCH12) July 9, 2022
Following the outbreak of the blaze, Medford City authorities urged residents living within a 2-mile radius of the plant to leave immediately.
Medford Public School, Blackwell Hotel, Wakita FD, Hawley Church and the Jefferson United Methodist Church opened their doors to those seeking safe shelter from the incident.
The Grant County Sheriff’s Office issued a warning for motorists, instructing them to avoid traveling into or through Medford along U.S. Highway 81.
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