07:33 PM CDT on Sunday, June 11, 2006

WWLTV.com

The sky near the Gulf was smoke-filled Sunday morning after thousands of gallons of diesel caught fire at Fuel Depot in Venice. Firefighters said the diesel leaked from a tank at the fueling dock in Venice near the mouth of the river, at about 7 a.m.

It was a delicate situation for firefighters because they were unable to use water to battle the fire.

Managers at the Cypress Cove Marina and Hotel neighboring the fueling dock said the 27,000 barrel tank was on fire sending plumes of black smoke into the air.

Many at the Marina reported seeing the dark clouds enter the air from miles away.

The fueling company's owner, John Stone, said the tank had 8300 barrels of diesel in it, but only 40 barrels leaked out. According to Stone, the diesel remained within the contaminant dike while it burned, and the fire was never was inside the tank.

Fire crews doused the fire with foam for three hours before completely extinguishing the blaze.

Investigators are still trying to determine what cause the leak, and fire.

I can't really elaborate on [the fire] because it's under investigation. We're going to have to pull the engine and the pumps and find out exactly what happened," said Stone.

Coast Guard officials said there was no impact to the water or environment since the diesel remained in the contamination area.

The company, Oil Distributors, sells diesel to boats and barges that operate in the Gulf.