Boiler catches fire at crude oil processing plant west of Santa Maria

SANTA MARIA, Calif. - Firefighters responded to a boiler that caught on fire at the Greka crude oil processing plant west of Santa Maria on Monday.

Santa Barbara County Fire was dispatched along with Santa Maria Fire to the 1600 block of Sinton Road around 9 a.m.

County Fire was the first to arrive on scene and reported seeing smoke coming from one of the boilers. They later said they saw flames coming out of the same boiler on the inside of the structure.

The building was safely evacuated and no injuries were reported.

Crews said one valve that was providing fuel to the boiler was shut off. As of 9:30 a.m., crews were still working to shut off a second valve providing fuel.

No flames spread to the rest of the building, the fire remained isolated to the boiler.

County Fire said an oil gas investigator was on the way to the scene to determined the cause of the fire.

We will update as more information becomes available.