Aug. 28 (UPI) — More than 3,000 people were evacuated from New York City’s Liberty Island on Monday after three 100-pound propane tanks caught fire, authorities said.
Approximately 3,400 tourists visiting the island were pushed to the docking area and taken off the island as firefighters put out the fire, which began on a construction site. No tourists were injured. One construction worker suffered a minor injury and refused medical attention. Nonetheless, New York Fire Department Assistant Chief Roger Sakowich said it a “very dangerous situation.”
“With that much propane, had one of the tanks exploded — it was would have been catastrophic. We took the precaution to evacuate 3,400 civilians from the island,” Sakowich said in a statement on Twitter. “The tanks were approximately 100 feet from the water, and 200 feet from the base of the statue. The cause of the fire is under investigation.”
A total of about 100 fire rescue workers were used to extinguish the fire, which took about two hours and used water from the harbor.
