Toxic Smoke From Puerto Rico Fire a Health Risk

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Thousands of people are living on the outskirts of a burning fuel-storage site. They were urged to relocate Saturday to avoid toxic smoke still billowing from the fire.

More than 1,500 people were evacuated after Friday's earthshaking explosion at the Caribbean Petroleum Corp. in the suburb of Bayamon, just west of the capital of San Juan.

Only a few people were slightly injured by the blast, which caused a lot of damage, such as broken windows, doors blasted off their hinges and it managed to shake the ground. But authorities are now concerned about those downwind of the fire, with breezes pushing smoke on Saturday toward more populated neighborhoods.

Authorities urged residents, most especially those with respiratory problems, who live near the site to temporarily move elsewhere until the fire is extinguished and the smoke brought under control.

"To those people with respiratory problems, our recommendation is that you not wait," Gov. Luis Fortuno said.

Several people were treated Friday for respiratory distress. The 1,500 people evacuated and another 230 people who sought shelter away from home have not returned.

Crews were monitoring the situation and anticipated more evacuations if weather worsened.

"The smoke is extremely toxic," said Jose Bartolomei, a state epidemiologist who monitors asthma. "An asthmatic patient will definitely hyper-react to this."

Adding to the danger is the presence of invisible gases such as carbon monoxide and sulfur, said Luis Antonio Ocasio, spokesman for the island's Environmental Quality Board.

Local officials, along with a New Jersey crew from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, are monitoring the air with handheld devices and probing whether any fuel spilled into the nearby ocean, he said.