A fire broke out Friday afternoon at the Moss Landing Power Plant in Monterey County, prompting evacuation orders for nearby residents.
Crews from the North County Fire Protection District extinguished the fire, according to an alert shared by Monterey County.
The Monterey County Sheriff's Office issued evacuation orders at 6:30 p.m. for areas south of Elkhorn Slough at Moss Landing, Molera Road and Monterey Dunes Way and Castroville Boulevard and west of Elkhorn Road.
Earlier, Monterey County officials warned residents living near the power plant to close their windows and doors and not turn on air conditioning units.
The plant is a natural gas-fired electric generating plant near Moss Landing Harbor in unincorporated Monterey County. The plant also has storage sites for lithium-ion batteries, which can release toxic gases into the air if ignited.
In September 2022, a Tesla Megapack battery caught fire in an energy storage facility at the power plant.
The cause of Thursday's fire is currently unknown.
Road closures are in effect at Dolan Road and Castroville Boulevard, Highway 1 at Salinas Road and Highway 1 at Merritt Street. The North County Recreation Center at 11261 Crane St. in Castroville has been established as an evacuation site.