UPDATE: As of 10 a.m, Thursday morning, approximately 40
firefighters and support personnel where still on the scene battling the
fire at Caraustar-Carolina recycling plant. On scene personnel continue
to douse recycled materials with water to ensure the fire is out and
will not rekindle. Police and Red Cross remain on the scene.
CHARLOTTE, NC -- A massive fire at Carolina's Recycling in Charlotte
is still burning Wednesday night, seven hours after the first 911 call
came in to dispatchers.
Families were still without electricity and Rozzell's Ferry road is blocked off at certain streets beginning at Gardner.
Firefighters disappeared in smoke, walking toward the interior of the fire.
"Very scary!" said Shirley Rose.
Rose rushed to pick up her grandchildren at a daycare a block from the burning recycling center.
Duke Energy cut power to keep electrical lines from sparking
overhead while crews continued putting out the fire. The city cut
resident's water for at least four hours to give more than 150
firefighters more pressure to battle the flames.
"It's scary," said daycare owner Sandra Littlejohn. "Not only to I
have children to look after, I have employees, I have staff to look out
for."
As temperatures rose close to 100 degrees, Charlotte fire was
forced to raise the threat level to a five alarm fire in order to call
out more crews to rotate heat exhausted firefighters out of the flames.
"We don't ever want to see any of our firemen who try to take care
of us hurt," said onlooker Josh Cribb. "It's always a concern. They're
out here risking their life for us."
Cribb watched as medics pulled in, giving as many as ten firefighters at a time IV fluids. One was hospitalized and released.
City buses gave firefighters air conditioned relief from the heat.
Deputy Chief Pete Key says the fire is likely accidental.
"One of the machineries created a spark from the surface of the asphalt and ignited the cardboard," said Deputy Chief Key.
Residents say this is the second fire at the plant in two months.
"Now, here it is, back up again," said Rose. "I mean, it's absolutely horrible."
Carolina's Recycling would normally sell the cardboard bundles.
Investigators say it's not clear how much they lost in the fire.
