It took more than two hours for several local agencies to quell an oil fire that developed north of Emporia Tuesday afternoon.
According to Lyon County Fire District 2 Allen Admire Chief Tharon Mott, area crews were called to the intersection of US Highway 56 and Road K, nearly 19 miles north of Emporia and 1.2 miles west of Allen, just before noon for a fire. Upon arrival, crews found two oil bulk tanks next to a pump that were fully engulfed in flames and encroaching on a third.
According to Mott, it took crews a little more than two hours to extinguish the blaze, which destroyed two of the tanks and damaged the third. No injuries were reported and Mott says the cause is undetermined, however, it is believed the fire was the result of a lightning strike in the area.
The quantity and dollar value of the oil in the destroyed tanks are unknown at this time. Along with District 2, firefighters from Emporia, Americus, Miller/Reading and Lyon County Sheriff’s Deputies all responded to the scene.
