The Aftermath of the Deer Park Pipeline Fire
Veronica Martinez can’t help but wonder about the fate of the driver who was behind the SUV that collided with the pipeline, igniting a massive fire in Deer Park.
Newly released video footage provided to KHOU offers a closer look at the aftermath of the natural gas liquid-fueled fire. The video also shows the mangled remnants of the SUV that struck a valve, triggering the catastrophic inferno on that fateful Monday morning.
Describing the horrifying scene, witness Veronica Martinez recalled, “I saw that white SUV go up, I don’t know how high. Just saw it go up and fall, engulfed in flames.”
At the time of the incident, Martinez was at a nearby urgent care facility with her unwell 3-year-old son. The same facility’s dash camera captured the SUV veering off the road, crashing through a fence, and colliding with the pipeline.
“There’s a fire, like super big fire,” Martinez remembered. “Everybody panicked.” In a rush to safety, she left her own vehicle behind and fled with her son in tow.
Even from a distance, Martinez could see her white SUV parked in the lot, which was currently off-limits for her return. Reflecting on the intense heat she experienced, Martinez shared, “As soon as we opened that front door, just the heat that you felt was so intensely strong. So, at that point, our instinct was just to get out.”
Witnessing the tireless efforts of pipeline, utility, and emergency crews over the past few days, Martinez hoped for a speedy return to normalcy. However, she couldn’t shake the thought of the unknown fate of the SUV’s driver, whose charred vehicle remained at the site pending a full assessment by Deer Park authorities once the fire is extinguished.
“I mean, a million things could’ve happened in a scenario like that,” Martinez pondered. “You just never know.”
According to CenterPoint, repairs to all affected distribution lines had been successfully completed by Wednesday. Consequently, the evacuation order was lifted at 6 p.m., marking a significant step towards recovery in the wake of the devastating pipeline fire.