Oil spills into Yellowstone River after Exxon Mobil pipeline ruptures

An Exxon Mobil pipeline that runs under the Yellowstone River in Montana ruptured Friday night and leaked for about a half-hour.

The New York Times reported that the over 120 residents in the town of Laurel, downstream from the rupture, had to be evacuated because officials feared a possible explosion.

Exxon said it had no information on the cause of the incident, which originated from a 12-inch pipeline that runs from Silver Tip to refineries in Billings.

The amount of oil that leaked is still being determined. The Billings Gazette reported that the company had dispatched local cleanup teams with absorbent pads to leach up oil from the riverbanks. Exxon's Global Response Team is being sent from Houston.

Exxon Mobile said "it deeply regrets this release and is working hard with local emergency authorities to mitigate the impacts of this release on the surrounding communities and to the environment."

The company has set up a toll-free hotline to report oil sightings or other concerns.

CORRECTION: Previous version of this article incorrectly referred to Laurel as Lauren.