LA streets knee-deep in 50,000 gallons of oil

About 50,000 gallons of crude oil has spilled on to the streets in California after a pipe ruptured.

The Los Angeles fire department said the leak from a 20in pipe near the suburb of Glendale was reported around 12.15am in Atwater Village, and the oil line was remotely shut off. No injuries were reported.

Oil spilled over approximately half a mile and is knee-deep in some areas, police said. A handful of commercial businesses are affected.

Hazardous materials crews were at the scene.

Fire department spokesman Erik Scott said there is no "visible evidence" that the oil had entered storm drains, which empty into the Los Angeles River.

But he said it is possible that oil had seeped under manhole covers.