Fire Reported at Westlake Chemical Plant in Louisiana

Firefighters put down a fire early Tuesday morning at a Westlake Chemical production plant in Plaquemine, LA, several local news organizations reported. 

The company issued a statement saying the blaze started in a vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) unit at the facility at about 4:15 a.m. Fire crews contained the flames to the area of the unit and brought the scene under control by 6:30 a.m., CBS News affiliate WAFB reported. A subsidiary of Westlake, Axiall Corporation, appears to be the operator of the Plaquemine plant, according to information on the company's website.

No injuries were logged during the incident, but a road near to the plant was briefly closed as a precaution. 

Officials told news broadcaster WBRZ that fence line monitoring devices indicate no harmful substances were released during the fire. 

The cause of the fire remains unknown. 

Earlier this year, Westlake Chemical announced plans to invest $140 million to expand its production capacity for VCM and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) at its Geismar, LA plant.  

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