Moss Landing fire: One of the worldโs largest battery factories ablaze
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Hundreds were evacuated after a blaze broke out in one of the largest battery storage facilities in the world on Thursday night, local authorities have said.
Towering flames were visible from afar as a large black column of smoke rose from Californiaโs Moss Landing Power Plant, with the fire showing no signs of easing on Thursday night.
The fire was detected at an energy storage facility in the natural gas-fueled plant, which is around 300 miles north of the wildfires in Los Angeles. The plant contains tens of thousands of lithium batteries, which can be extremely difficult to put out if they go up in flames.
โThereโs no way to sugar coat it. This is a disaster, is what it is,โ Monterey County supervisor Glenn Church told KSBW-TV. But the fire is not expected to spread beyond the concrete building it is enclosed in, he added.
The cause of the fire is currently unclear, said a statement from the factoryโs owners, Texas-based company Vistra Energy. Around 1,500 people were successfully evacuated from the building, according to The Mercury News.
All schools and offices in the North Monterey County Unified School District would be closed on Friday due to the fire, it was announced. Parts of Highway 1 have also been closed in both directions as crews battle the towering inferno in the plant, near Elkhorn Slough.
โOur top priority is the safety of the community and our personnel, and Vistra deeply appreciates the continued assistance of our local emergency responders,โ Jenny Lyon, a spokesperson for Vistra, said in a statement.
The company will open in investigation into the causes of the fire once the blaze is brought under control.
Vistra plants also suffered fires in 2021 and 2022 which were caused by a fire sprinkler system malfunction, causing some units to overheat, The Mercury News reported.
Vistra Energy is the largest power generator in the U.S. The company is listed on the Fortune 500. In 2020, a study found that Vistra was the highest CO2 emitter in the country.
In the wake of Donald Trumpโs election victory in November, Vistra CEO James Burke was quoted as saying that the new administration may impact greenhouse gas regulations, giving the companyโs fossil fuel divisions โextended life.โ This past December, The Economist named Burke as one of the best CEOs in the U.S. in 2024.
