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Fire With Toxic Fumes Could Burn for Days in Indiana, Officials Warn [1]
['Johnny Diaz']
Date: 2023-04-12
Plumes of black, toxic smoke billowed out over eastern Indiana on Wednesday from an industrial fire that was expected to burn for days, the authorities said, a day after more than 2,000 residents were ordered to evacuate.
Residents within a half-mile radius of a plastics recycling plant in Richmond, Ind., were ordered to evacuate after the fire broke out around 2 p.m. on Tuesday on the 14-acre property, Matthew Cain, director of the Wayne County Emergency Management Agency, said on Wednesday. Schools were also closed and shelters were being set up around the city, which is about 70 miles east of Indianapolis.
“These are very fine particles and if they are breathed in can cause all kinds of respiratory problems,” Christine Stinson, the executive director of the Wayne County Health Department, said at a news conference on Wednesday. She said that people could experience a burning sensation in their eyes and tightening in the chest. “It could aggravate asthma,” she said. “It could cause bronchitis and all kinds of things.”
Officials believe the fire started on Tuesday afternoon after a semitrailer caught on fire on the property. It was not clear what caused the trailer to catch fire. As of Wednesday, about 13.5 acres of the property had burned, Mr. Cain said. Fire officials did not think foul play was involved. The next official update from the county’s emergency management agency is scheduled for Thursday afternoon.
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[1] Url:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/12/us/richmond-indiana-recycling-plant-fire.html?smid=tw-nytimes&smtyp=cur
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