Southern Saskatchewan experienced stormy weather Monday afternoon with a powerful lightning strike hitting an oil battery, setting it on fire. .At approximately 1:30 p.m., the oil battery located northeast of Stoughton was struck by lightning, resulting in an intense fire. The fire quickly spread to nearby tanks containing natural gas and oil, causing them also to ignite and burn..Stoughton Fire Chief Pat Slater said the fire resulted from a lightning strike that ignited the “tanks with flammable liquids and natural gas and oil.”.“The damage is already done and there's no point risking anyone's life safety in trying to put it out,” Slater told the media..“We have basically cleared the area, stopped anybody going by the area by blocking the road and I ensured there were no propane tanks on site. We are going to let it burn itself out.”.Slater confirmed the operator stopped all supplies entering the battery site. Regarding the extent of the damage, Slater refrained from commenting, but did say Pemoco Oil owns the property..Slater said the fire had been successfully contained and would not spread to the surrounding area, preventing additional environmental damage. There were no residents in the vicinity, so evacuation was unnecessary..“There is smoke in the air, but not as bad as fires from Alberta and BC and it's higher in the atmosphere,” said Slater..“It's a pretty minor incident. Everything is contained. It's just stuff that happens.”.Stoughton is located approximately 6-km east of Weyburn.
