LOS ANGELES - Firefighters investigating a reported petroleum stench at a California beach last month didn't take long to find a spill - oil was spreading across the sand and into the surf. Tracing the source, they found crude gushing from a bluff like a fire hose "without a nozzle," records show.

But critical time would elapse before the operator of a nearby pipeline confirmed that it had ruptured and spewed the oil. An employee at the scene for Plains All American Pipeline initially suggested to firefighters that the spill "was too big to be from their pipeline," according to the documents obtained by The Associated Press.

The description of what firefighters found May 19 at Refugio State Beach was detailed in records Santa Barbara County firefighters filed with state officials. It indicates that firefighters who arrived just before noon quickly recognized that "some sort of leak or spill had occurred."

A Plains company spokeswoman would not comment Thursday on why it took until later in the afternoon for its workers to confirm the line was cracked and spilling thousands of gallons of oil onto the sand and water west of Santa Barbara.

Plains is facing scrutiny from federal regulators and lawmakers over the spill, which washed up goo on beaches as far as 100 miles away. The failed pipeline released up to 101,000 gallons, and an estimated 21,000 gallons reached the water.

The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee opened an investigation Thursday and asked the company for detailed information on maintenance of the line, including how it addressed corrosion. The panel also wants the company to explain what it did in the hours leading up to the break and how it reported the problem.

A key issue has been how long it took the Texas-based company to relay information on the break to the federal government. Internal planning documents stress the importance of notifying the government of a leak as quickly as possible.

Federal regulations require the company to notify the National Response Center, a clearinghouse for reports of hazardous-material releases, "at the earliest practicable moment." State law requires immediate notification of a release or a threatened release.

Company employees at the scene did not confirm a leak until about 1:30 p.m., and it would be nearly 3 p.m. before the company would contact the response center. By then, the federal response led by the Coast Guard was underway.

The federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is investigating the cause of the accident, and state prosecutors have been considering potential charges against the company. The federal agency released preliminary findings earlier this month that the break occurred along a badly corroded section that had worn away to a fraction of an inch in thickness.

State prosecutors have been considering potential charges against the company.