This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Several oil storage tanks were destroyed by an early Tuesday morning fire in Duchesne County believed ignited by a lightning strike.
Duchesne County public safety dispatchers confirmed that the fire was reported just after midnight at the EP Energy well site about a mile outside the town of Altamont.
The tanks reportedly exploded, sending flames high into the dark skies of eastern Utah. Residents reported feeling the blasts shake their homes for miles away.
EP Energy spokesman Art Pike said the drilling site was unoccupied at the time of the fire so no injuries had been reported.
"It does appear we had a lightning strike at our tank battery there that started the fire," Pike said late Tuesday morning. "The situation is stable, the fire out and we are in cleanup and repair mode now."
Pike knew of no environmental impacts, adding that EP Energy "will be working now to get everything cleaned up and back to normal."
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