More than 100 employees were evacuated from the BP operations center at 380 Airport Road on Friday after a fire alarm was set off and smoke was reported inside the building.
The Upper Pine, Los Pinos and Durango fire departments responded to the alarm shortly after 8:30 a.m., Durango Fire Marshal Karola Hanks said.
A fire alarm was manually pulled, she said. Smoke was reported on the building’s second floor.
“We have an electrical issue above the ceiling on the second floor,” she said.
By 9:30 a.m., the fire departments were beginning to send back some of the engines on scene. The extent of damage to the building was not immediately clear.
“We’re going to have to get electrical experts back in there to let us know,” she said.
No injuries were reported. Around 10 a.m., fire officials allowed employees to return to the building.
BP America is one of the largest private employers in La Plata County. The Airport Road building is BP’s main operations center for its north San Juan Basin natural gas and oil operations.
cslothower@durangoherald.com
