Fire at the Vistra battery plant in Moss Landing prompts evacuation orders.

[hunter]

Highway 1 is closed and people from Moss Landing are ordered to evacuate as a fire burns at the Vistra power plant on Thursday night, Jan. 16.

"We do have an active fire, burning through the building. Essentially what we are doing is backing out of the facility," North Monterey County Fire Chief Joel Mendoza told the Weekly at about 6:30pm.

People in two areas just east of Highway 1 in Moss Landing behind the Moss Landing power plant were advised to shut their windows and doors and shut off air systems until further notice, as advised by Monterey County officials just after 5pm on Thursday, Jan. 16.

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https://www.montereycountynow.com/blogs/news_blog/updated-fire-at-the-moss-landing-power-plant-prompts-evacuation-orders/article_58f70a34-d46f-11ef-918c-4380a2b17500.html

This is an environmental disaster. The power plant is adjacent to a protected wetland. The toxins released by this inferno will linger for a long time.

These huge battery systems play an essential role in the economic viability of California's hybrid gas-wind-solar energy electric power infrastructure.