DEER PARK, Texas — The pipeline fire in Deer Park is finally out around 80 hours after it started Monday morning.
The fire was caused by an SUV that crashed through a fence and into the pipeline valve above ground, setting off an explosive fire.
On Thursday morning, human remains were recovered from the white SUV and Deer Park officials said this has developed into a criminal investigation.
According to the Deer Park Office of Emergency Management, the Harris County medical examiner was able to process the vehicle and recover the human remains. They are now working through their identification process, which will take time.
This comes after crews brought a flatbed truck to tow the charred and melted white car that was still near the above-ground valve along Spencer Highway where the fire was burning.
Views from Air 11 showed Deer Park police setting up a command center along Spencer Highway near the scene of the fire. We could also see a gurney and canopy set up near the command center.
On Tuesday, dashcam video provided a closer look at the moment the vehicle hit the above-ground valve that sparked the massive pipeline fire.
The fire started just before 10 a.m. Monday at Spencer Highway near East Boulevard near the Brookglen neighborhood.
Monday evening, the City of Deer Park confirmed the fire was caused by an SUV crashing through the fence of a nearby Walmart and hitting an above-ground valve.
At a news conference Thursday, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said the incident stressed the need for more protection around pipelines that are above ground.
“One of the things that we want to look at going forward is what can we do so that elsewhere in the county these pipelines and valves that are above the earth can be protected by concrete as opposed to these fences that, obviously, we saw you can ram through," Hidalgo said.
She said state law might limit the extent of regulations imposed on a county or city level.
Hundreds of residents who were evacuated when the pipeline burst into flames were allowed to return on Wednesday but a lot of them have major damage to their homes and vehicles. One family said they haven't been able to find one of their missing cats.
Hidalgo said she met with some of the residents.
"Their stories really are heartbreaking. They talk about the entire house shaking and about how many of them don’t want to live there anymore," Hidalgo said. "They’re scared of the area.”
The county judge said the residents are grateful that pipeline owner Energy Transfers has been transparent throughout the process. She said they also have concerns about whether the company will cover the cost of repairing their homes and vehicles or lost wages from missing work this week.
Spencer Highway will remain closed from Luella to Canada Road until demobilization has been completed, the City of Deer Park said Thursday night.