A Coast Guard helicopter is assisting at the scene.
SABINE PASS, Texas — Nine workers escaped injury Thursday afternoon after being plucked from atop a burning oil rig by a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter in Sabine Pass, Texas.
The Coast Guard confirmed they had rescued nine people in total from the rig.
Port Arthur firefighters and the Coast Guard responded to the scene Thursday afternoon at a shipyard in Sabine Pass near Port Arthur where the rig was being dismantled for scrap.
The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that the workers were trapped atop the rig.
The workers who were rescued were only about 100 feet from the fire according to Port Arthur Mayor Thurman Bartie who had briefed on the situation.
A 12News crew on the scene reported hearing explosions from atop the burning rig.
A crew from Coast Guard Station Sabine as well as the helicopter was on the scene according to the Coast Guard.
This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.