Newhall Refinery destroyed as major fire spreads through Old Town Newhall

A three-alarm fire destroyed the Newhall Refinery restaurant and spread to several nearby businesses in Old Town Newhall, California, early Monday morning.

The blaze was first reported at about 2:54 AM in the 24200 block of Main Street and continued burning nearly five hours later sa more than 100 firefighters were deployed to battle the fire.

The Newhall Refinery, the city-operated Main Theatre and Caring Quality Dental were among the locations most heavily affected as of Monday morning.

No injuries had been reported by about 6:30 AM and the cause of the fire was not immediately known.

The city of Santa Clarita urged people to avoid the area as emergency crews worked at the scene.

“Main Street, Sixth Street, Eighth Street, Railroad Avenue and Newhall Avenue are all closed. Please avoid the area and use alternate routes,” the city said in a Facebook post.

The Newhall Refinery opened in May 2013 and became a prominent business in the city’s efforts to revitalise Old Town Newhall as an arts and entertainment district.

The Main Theatre, which has been operated by Santa Clarita since 2017, has also served as a community venue for plays, films, meetings and other events.

It was not immediately clear how the fire would affect upcoming events scheduled in Old Town Newhall.