Eleven fuel tanks at the Caribbean Petroleum Corp. facility in the city of Bayamon, near San Juan, were ablaze, Gov. Luis Fortuno said in a news release. Firefighters were trying to cool off the remaining 29 to keep them from igniting, he said. The storage complex sits on San Juan's bay.
"I don't think there's ever been a fire like this in Puerto Rico," Fire Lt. Jose Atorre told CNN affiliate WLII-TV.
Newspaper and TV reports said a 4-inch pipe from a lagoon on the property was broken, preventing firefighters from using water from the lake to battle the blaze.
One person suffered smoke inhalation and was taken to a hospital, Fortuno said. At least 350 people were evacuated to a nearby stadium. iReport.com: See, share, send images of the explosion
The smoke can be toxic for people with breathing conditions, and officials have asked nearby residents to stay away, the governor said.
Officials were investigating the cause of the blaze, which started shortly after midnight. Puerto Rico is a U.S. protectorate, which means federal officials are involved.
FBI Agent Shawn Deturn confirmed that authorities were looking into graffiti found on at least one San Juan tunnel that mentioned the fire. The spray-painted message at the Minillas Tunnel in San Juan said: "Boom, fire, RIP, Gulf, Soul, ACNF." A second tunnel was reported to have the same message. Officials do not know who or what ACNF is, Deturn said.
Caribbean Petroleum owns the Gulf Oil brand in Puerto Rico.
San Juan police said they activated all units: explosives, transit, tactical operations and SWAT.
The National Guard Combat Support Team was monitoring air quality and local environmental officials were working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to install monitors near the blaze.
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