Recordpub.com - Brimfield fire lights up skies

By Colin McEwen

Record-Courier staff writer

BRIMFIELD -- Huge plumes of thick black smoke could be seen for miles in a cloudless sky Saturday night as firefighters from three counties battled a blaze at Puritan Systems at 1161 Holiday Drive.

No injuries were reported, but residents from nearby homes were evacuated and relocated to Brimfield Elementary School on S.R. 43 because of the threat of the fire spreading and the presence of caustic nitrogen tanks near the flames.

Puritan Systems is a scrap rubber reduction plant. Holiday Drive is located near the intersection of S.R. 43 and Interstate 76.

Firefighters from approximately 10 fire departments responded shortly before 8 p.m., said Brimfield Police Chief David Blough, as water tanker trucks shuttled behind him, back and forth from the staging area on the other side of S.R. 76.

He said workers at Purtian Systems left the premises around 3:30 p.m., and there was no indication of exactly how the fire began.

"I haven't seen a fire of this size before in Brimfield," said Blough, adding firefighters were fighting the fire in a defensive position to prevent the blaze from spreading. "When firefighters arrived the fire was fully involved."

He said that when firefighters arrived, not only was the 25,000-square-foot building engulfed in flames, but so were two vehicles parked near the building.

Traffic from nearby S.R. 76 and S.R. 43 was backed up -- at times for more than a mile -- as gawkers slowed down for a peek.

The smell of burning rubber filled the cool evening air when the westerly winds briefly shifted direction. Smoke from the blaze reportedly could be seen as far away as Barberton and Palmyra.

Bystanders gathered on the porch of the closed America's Best Value Inn and Suites adjacent to Puritan Systems to catch a better view.

Some took photos with their camera phones, others huddled on the steps to watch.

Robert Kannal, who represents the owners of the inn, warned onlookers they would be responsible for their own safety while they watched.

He said he had witnessed five to seven fires at the plant this year, "but this is the big one."

Blough expected evacuees from nearby condominiums to return to their homes within four hours, but the American Red Cross did respond with assistance.

Residents and businesses were alerted with the township's new Code Red -- a telephone emergency alert system.

Dick Wilson of Akron drove from his Akron home with his wife to view the blaze up close. He spotted the huge plumes of smoke miles away in Firestone Park.

"There wasn't a cloud in the sky," he said. "We looked up and knew that something was seriously on fire."

The smoke clouds also could be seen from the other direction on the east side of Ravenna.

Among the dozens of emergency vehicles responding from countless departments, were Brimfield, Ravenna, Ravenna Township, Rootstown, Kent, Suffield, Hartville, Tallmadge, Edinburg and Streetsboro.

The Portage County Sheriff's Department responded to provide security, as did police from Kent State University and Brimfield.

"From a police standpoint, we were just supporting the fire departments," said Blough.

Reporter Diane Smith contributed to this report.

7.	Posted by Kamda28 August 31, 2008
	Hey Ward, If you read the whole post I said I was thankful that noone was injured in the process of putting out the flames and that none of our employees were present. I also thanked the fire departments that participated in the help. And I am also a Brimfield resident so I know exactly how much revenue the township will be missing!!!! I know the building is still going because I have been down to the site. As for the president of our company. There is no sprinkler system that would put out a blaze that started by RUBBER. Also, there has not been fires there this year. I know I work there. The article in the paper was WRONG. The post was not to be meant as ALL ABOUT ME, just all the families of the people that I have come to look at as part of my family will be having rough times because of this. For the record when is it a crime for the president of the company to take a vacation. This is something you know nothing about. I was and am still in shock over this, so show some sympathy or empathy!

6.	Posted by zoobuddie August 31, 2008
	to kamda28- we all know loosing a job is a bad thing especially right now with the holidays coming up and bush in office, but get over it you can apply for unemployment, get approved, get all of the special benefits avalable to you like job retraining, the govt will pay to send you to school and the owner has insurance, if he was soooo interested in keeping his business he would have had a much better sprinkler system and there wouldnt have been soooooo many little fires there this year! so you just better pray to god that the owner doesnt just take his insurance money and skip town!!!! because it looks to me like he didnt care a whole lot about his "business", why dont you think about all the revune that the place give to the township, everything is just about you- the place is still burning i live on 43 about 1.5 mi away and can still see plenty of smoke and there have been several tanks of water being shipped in to douse the flames still in the last hour about 3

3.	Posted by Kamda28 August 31, 2008
	I work at Puritan Systems and am happy that noone was hurt or killed in this building. I am glad it was empty and that none of the firefighters were injured in the fight to put out this blaze. I am in shell shock today as all the people I work with, including me, HAVE NO JOB THIS MORNING! In everyone's hurry to see what the fire was and where the black smoke was coming from, noone seemed to care that our livlihoods was being ripped from us. It felt like our lives were going up in black smoke. Trying to get to the scene was horrible because of all the bystanders and traffic. The owner of the company is and was on vacation and needed details from the fire chief that we could not provide him for a very long time because we were trying to get there. The red cross was there with snacks and food and offered them to us freely which was a nice gesture but when asked if they could assist some of the families in future days and weeks they just shook their heads and didn't say much of anything. I commend all the firefighters who came to help and appreciate all they did last night. I now pray for my boss, my co-workers and the owner which will be coming home from vacation to see his life burned to a crisp.