An investigation is underway into the cause of a fire that erupted inside a corn oil storage tank in the Port of Providence Thursday afternoon.
Providence Fire Chief Derek Silva said the tank, situated off of Terminal Road, had roughly 3,000 gallons of corn oil inside of it when it caught fire.
The cap of the tank blew off and landed a distance away, after striking a utility pole. There were no injuries.
The liquid flames did not spread beyond the storage tank, and firefighters were able to smother them with a blanket of foam, Silva told WPRI.
Global Partners, owners of the facility, commended firefighters for their swift actions to control the fire and preventing it from spreading.
“The affected tank has been taken out of service and will remain offline until the root cause [of the fire] is identified and appropriate corrective actions are implemented to prevent future occurrences,” Global Partners wrote.
