Crews contain fire at plastic storage facility in Mesa Del Sol
Photo courtesy of AFR and BCFR.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Albuquerque and Bernalillo County Fire Rescue crews have gained control of a large fire at a plastic storage facility in Mesa Del Sol.
The fire started around 2:30 p.m. Sunday near the Atkore facility. Arson investigators are still trying to figure out how the fire began. They did nail down the origin – a charred car, parked near the building.
With unpredictable winds, fire crews faced huge flames and dark, toxic smoke. That smoke could be seen from downtown Albuquerque, Rio Rancho and Los Lunas.
Reps with AFR and BCFR said it was a miracle no one was hurt. The only evacuations needed were for the Atkore workers. However, there was major damage to the building, equipment, and generator.
Fire crews say it’s up to the business owner to handle clean-up now, but they will likely have to involve the state’s Environmental Department because of all the toxins.
As of Monday morning, Bernalillo County is no longer under an air quality alert.
Lisa Winter, Atkore’s vice president of communications, issued this statement Monday:
“On August 6, at approximately 2:30 pm Mountain Time, a fire broke out in the exterior yard of Atkore’s United Poly Systems facility, located on Hawking Drive in Albuquerque, NM. Fire officials have been on the scene and working diligently to contain the fire away from the facility. We can confirm that no Atkore employees were injured. The health and safety of our employees and the local community are our primary concerns. We are currently assessing the situation, and are cooperating with the appropriate authorities including regarding determining the cause of the fire. We will communicate further information as it becomes available to Atkore.”
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