The explosion on the Texas Tech campus in Lubbock caused fires and blackouts Wednesday, with school staff issued evacuation orders for several buildings and canceling classes the remaining weeks.
An alert sent to the campus community around 8:45pm explained that the explosion was occurring at the substation, but later updates said it was in the manhole.
No injuries have been reported, said John Tunnel, Lubbock Fire Rescue Commander.
Videos circulating on social media and local television stations show that firefighters were abundant on campus, with fire and smoke coming out of at least one manhole cover.
It was not clear what caused the explosion.
Caitlyn Jeffries, a spokesman for the university's police department, said power will be closed across the campus in Lubbock, Texas, while repairs are in progress.
“You can go ahead and go home. We'll be closing schools for the next few days,” Jeffries said.
The school also instructed faculty and staff to work remotely, if possible, to remote notifications.
Lubbock Fire Rescue responded to the possibility of a gas leak around 7pm local time, and “we discovered multiple manholes had been causing smoke and fires,” Tunnell said.
“This remains a very active scene as the crew continues to help alleviate this emergency,” he said.
Texas Tech has more than 40,000 students and the school is located on 1,800 acres in West Texas.
