Explosion, fire force evacuation of Wyoming town

A small town in western Wyoming was evacuated after an explosion and fire at a nearby gas-processing plant.

The town of Opal's approximately 100 residents were evacuated as a precaution, said Lincoln County, Wyo., spokesman Stephen Malik.

"There's still no reports of injuries," he said. "The town of Opal is evacuated as a precaution."

The blast rocked Opal around 2 p.m. Mountain Time. As of 5 p.m. firefighters believed they had the fire under control, Malik said.

"The gas has been shut off, but they just want to make sure that nobody gets affected by any smoke or anything that goes toward the town," Malik said.

No structures in the town were affected, and the fire was confined to the facility operated by pipeline operator Williams Partners LP, Malik said. Williams Partners is based in Tulsa, Okla.

Opal is about 2.5 hours east of Salt Lake City. Residents have been evacuated to an area about 3 miles outside of town. Two evacuation centers have been set up on the town's east and west sides. Like many small towns in the area, Opal lies tightly in a line along an east-west road.

Malik said the plant refines petroleum into gasoline and other products before sending them to the West Coast.

The explosion occurred in the plant's cryogenic processing tower, a structure that chills unrefined natural gas to separate out impurities.

A spokesman for the plant run by Williams Partners LP said all employees have been accounted for. The cause of the explosion wasn't immediately known.

Contributing: The Associated Press