Wind Advisory
from SAT 12:00 PM MST until SAT 10:00 PM MST, Western Pima County including Ajo/Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Tohono O'odham Nation including Sells, Upper Santa Cruz River and Altar Valleys including Nogales, Tucson Metro Area including Tucson/Green Valley/Marana/Vail, South Central Pinal County including Eloy/Picacho Peak State Park, Southeast Pinal County including Kearny/Mammoth/Oracle, Upper San Pedro River Valley including Sierra Vista/Benson, Eastern Cochise County below 5000 ft including Douglas/Wilcox, Upper Gila River and Aravaipa Valleys including Clifton/Safford, White Mountains of Graham and Greenlee Counties including Hannagan Meadow, Galiuro and Pinaleno Mountains including Mount Graham, Chiricahua Mountains including Chiricahua National Monument, Dragoon/Mule/Huachuca and Santa Rita Mountains including Bisbee/Canelo Hills/Madera Canyon, Santa Catalina and Rincon Mountains including Mount Lemmon/Summerhaven, Baboquivari Mountains including Kitt Peak, Kofa, Central La Paz, Aguila Valley, Southeast Yuma County, Gila River Valley, Northwest Valley, Tonopah Desert, Gila Bend, Buckeye/Avondale, Cave Creek/New River, Deer Valley, Central Phoenix, North Phoenix/Glendale, New River Mesa, Scottsdale/Paradise Valley, Rio Verde/Salt River, East Valley, Fountain Hills/East Mesa, South Mountain/Ahwatukee, Southeast Valley/Queen Creek, Superior, Northwest Pinal County, West Pinal County, Apache Junction/Gold Canyon, Tonto Basin, Mazatzal Mountains, Pinal/Superstition Mountains, Sonoran Desert Natl Monument, San Carlos, Dripping Springs, Globe/Miami, Southeast Gila County

Explosion rocks Eglin Air Force Base lab

A large fire sent thick black smoke spewing into the sky over Eglin Air Force Base in the Florida Panhandle this morning after an explosion at a lab there.

The Air Force says there was an explosion at the base's McKinley Climatic Lab just after 10 a.m. local time. Neighboring buildings were evacuated and a shelter-in-place order issued for nearby base streets.

Social media users around the Destin area shared photos and videos of smoke pouring from the seaside base.

"Bad fire on Eglin," Timothy Knox tweeted, along with a photo showing the smoke. "Forced evacuation from my building and almost choked getting to my car."

According to the Air Force, the McKinley Lab includes the largest environmental chamber in the world, which can duplicate any climatic environment. The facility can be used to test everything from large aircraft to missile launchers, tanks, and automobiles.

No injuries were reported, but the base's Twitter account urged everyone to avoid contact with the smoke.

"Update: The smoke may contain may contain methyl chloride," the @TeamEglin tweet warned. "The cause of the explosion is under investigation."

According to the EPA, methyl chloride, also known as chloromethane, is a refrigerant that's no longer widely used because of its potentially toxic properties. Inhalation can cause a wide variety of side effects, including dizziness, blurred vision, convulsions, and coma.

The smoke later dissipated and the shelter-in-place order was lifted.

The investigation continues.