An explosion at Texas Tech College in Lubbock, Texas, triggered fires and energy outages Wednesday night, prompting evacuation orders for a number of campus buildings and the cancellation of courses for the rest of the week.
The explosion, as occurring at a substation, was later up to date to have taken place at a manhole. No accidents have been reported, in response to Lubbock Fireplace Rescue Capt. Jon Tunnell.
Movies shared on social media and native information retailers confirmed heavy firefighter presence on campus, with seen smoke and flames emanating from at the least one manhole cowl. The reason for the explosion stays unclear.
In response to the continued emergency, energy to all the campus might be shut down whereas repairs are underway, mentioned Caitlynn Jeffries, a spokesperson for the college’s police division. “You’ll be able to go forward and go residence for Spring break. We’re closing faculty down for the subsequent couple days,” Jeffries added.
School and workers have been instructed to work remotely till additional discover. Earlier within the night, Lubbock Fireplace Rescue responded to studies of a potential fuel leak and found a number of manhole covers releasing smoke and hearth.
“This stays a really lively scene as crews proceed to help Texas Tech College in mitigating this emergency,” Tunnell acknowledged.
With over 40,000 college students, Texas Tech is positioned on 1,800 acres in West Texas. The college is taking steps to make sure the protection of its group whereas repairs and investigations into the explosion proceed.