Georgia chemical plant fire reignited after being contained: official

STORY: ::September 29, 2024

::Blaze at Georgia chemical plant reignited

after being contained, says fire chief

::Conyers, Georgia

Marian McDaniel/Fire Chief/Rockdale County

“The fire was contained and then the water supply secured. During the time they were offloading the product from the building, the fire reignited around 12 noon. For the past two or 3 hours, it’s been battling that fire to where we now have it out. Once again, the water is secure and we’re waiting to clean up some of debris so we can commence back to moving the product out of the building.”

Sharon Webb/ Director /Emergency Management/Rockdale County

“We did put a mandatory evacuation zone that extends to Sigmond to Lake View, our former road, as well as Urban Bridge to Georgia 20 and Georgia 20 Back to Sigmund Road. We have I-20 is shut down from turn Hill all the way to Salem Road for the time being. Anyone out of this zone or the north side? We do recommend shelter in place until the plume clears.”

“During the time they were offloading the product from the building, the fire reignited around 12 noon. For the past two or 3 hours, it’s been battling that fire to where we now have it out. Once again, the water is secure and we’re waiting to clean up some of debris so we can commence back to moving the product out of the building,” said McDaniel.

The incident began around 5:30 a.m. (0930 GMT) when a sprinkler system malfunctioned, reacting with chemicals inside the factory and creating a massive plume of smoke visible from miles away.

The fire resulted in a shelter-in-place order for all Rockdale County residents. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) are currently on-site assessing potential hazards, as officials warn of possible toxic exposure from the smoke.