HOUSTON (Reuters) - Authorities called for residents in four towns to flee their homes ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday following a new blast at an east Texas chemical plant that has been burning for more than 12 hours.

Jefferson County officials ordered residents within a 4-mile (6.4-km) radius of the TPC Group chemical plant in Port Neches to evacuate when a blast shredded a chemical distillation tower during firefighting efforts. About 60,000 people across Port Neches, Groves, Port Arthur and Nederland, Texas, were ordered to leave.