Recordpub.com - Residents return after factory fire Agencies probe cause of Brimfield blaze

By Marci Piltz
Record-Courier staff writer
BRIMFIELD "Four agencies continue to investigate the cause of a fire Saturday at Puritan Systems, a scrap rubber reduction plant, that led to the evacuation of many township residents.
Those residents who were evacuated because of the fire at 1161 Holiday Drive were alerted through a Code Red telephone alert system Sunday night that they were able to return to their homes, Brimfield Police Chief David Blough said Monday.
The Code Red system, recently instituted by the township, can send emergency messages either township wide or within a certain radius of an incident, Blough said. Saturday's fire was the first time the township used the system, he said, and it worked "great."
"We sent out a total of five "Code Red' messages, the first one being an advisory to avoid the areas of Interstate 76 and S.R. 43 due to traffic issues we were having," Blough said. Holiday Drive is located in that area. "That one was sent out township wide. After that one, several of us involved came to the decision to take the radius down to within one mile of the incident, and we kept those people informed throughout the incident of what was going on, when they needed to leave or shut their windows, and the last one we made notified them it was safe to return to their homes."
He also noted the Ohio Evironmental Protection Agency has been on the scene monitoring the air quality since the fire, which began around 8 p.m. Saturday, about five hours after workers had gone home for the day. Those monitoring tests have indicated no life hazards exist because of fire or smoke.
Blough said it is safe for residents to open windows and use air conditioning units at their homes if desired.
Brimfield Fire Chief Bob Keller said Monday a fire crew remained posted at the site of the blaze and had dealt with a few flare-ups throughout the night. He said concerns about possible explosions expressed immediately after the fire have now been quelled.
"The company uses liquid nitrogen in part of its manufacturing process, and there were tanks on scene that had product in them," Keller said. "We were concerned that the exterior walls of the building had lost stability, but those tanks were vented last night and so they are now empty, so we removed that hazard."
Keller said the tanks were emptied in conjunction with a recommendation by the Ohio EPA.
"The EPA was there today (Monday) to follow up on monitoring the air quality, both on runoff from the water used to extinguish the fire and also the air quality."
Keller said the Brimfield fire department responded to two fires at the plant in one day in April, when a fire initially extinguished rekindled.
He also said prior inspections by the department showed there was no sprinkler system inside the Holiday Drive building.
Keller said the 25,000-square-foot building is a complete loss, and he will be meeting with representatives from Puritan Systems and the property owners soon to determine a damage estimate.
He said the cause of the fire is being investigated by the Brimfield Fire Department, the Brimfield Police Department, the Ohio State Fire Marshal's Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.