A tank that caught fire Wednesday afternoon at a South Jersey refinery and went to four alarms was extinguished, and by Thursday morning officials said people could safely go outside.
Lightning may have sparked the blaze by striking a chemical storage tank at Sunoco's Eagle Point refinery in the Westville section of West Deptford Township. The fire broke out at about 4:30 p.m., according to Sunoco spokesman Gerald Davis.
Officials said a chemical called xylene that goes into gasoline was burning in the tank. No injuries were reported.
The fire was reported to be out at about 8 p.m.
During the blaze, wind from the southwest was blowing smoke over inland areas of New Jersey.
New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection was asking people Wednesday night to stay indoors in Brooklawn, Westville and Gloucestery City.
Gloucester County authorities said that no evacuations had been ordered. Sunoco officials said the smoke was going up into the air and was not a danger.
Environmental Protection Agency and hazardous materials response teams were at the scene investigating.
Mike Monroe, of Bellmawr, who lives right under the cloud's path, said he noticed black, dime-sized ashy chunks landing on his front porch just after the fire started.
"You smear it, it goes away, but it leaves a residue," he said.
Monroe said he was more concerned about his pool, however, and what the ash and the xylene might possibly do to the people who swim in it.
"I don't know what the residue is going to do to me," Monroe said. "I just put this pool in 2 1/2 weeks ago. I want to know what's going on."
Images from Chopper 10 showed fire crews approaching the scene on the ground. Sources told NBC 10 News that fire officials were going to let the fire in the 36,000-barrel, above-ground tank burn out before deciding to put foam on it.
Route 130 was shut down right in front of the refinery, causing traffic tie-ups in the area.
Sunoco has set up a hotline for residents who have questions or concerns. That number is 1-800-786-0270.
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