(CNN) -- A pipeline explosion in eastern Ohio lit up the sky for 40 miles around but caused no injuries late Thursday, a government official said.

Flames from the fire shot 200 feet into the air, Jim Hoppel, president of the Columbiana County commission, said.

The explosion, involving Tennessee Gas Pipeline equipment, took place in Columbiana County, about 50 miles northwest of Pittsburgh. Gas lines feeding the fire were shut down around midnight, as fire crews put out brush fires in the area.

"This is in rural farmland," Hoppel said, noting that that evacuees in the area were free to return to their homes early Friday.