A large fire burned inside a chemical plant on the coast of Georgia, forcing 100 nearby homes to evacuate because of threats from toxic smoke and potential explosions. Firefighters were making notable progress against the blaze, but residents remained under evacuation orders Monday afternoon.
The fire sent a plume of thick smoke into the air from the plant about 70 miles south of Savannah, forcing firefighters to back away until it subsided. Firefighters fought the fire at Symrise early Monday for two hours but had to drop back after running out of water.
The fire started with three explosions at the plant, and residents have been ordered to evacuate because of the potential for the release of hydrogen peroxide pinene.
Glynn County Commissioner Wayne Neal said 100 households had evacuated and that the county had established a shelter that no one had used. Prosswimmer said the evacuation is based partly on the wind.
Hazmat crews from Savannah and Jacksonville are among the agencies that have converged at the port to assist local firefighters with incident at Symrise. The fire has been contained despite the ongoing evacuation orders.
Residents of Satilla Shores and Royal Oaks neighborhoods in southern Glynn County and Hickory Bluff and Sanctuary Cove neighborhoods in northern Camden County are being told to shelter in place. School buses are also avoiding the Satilla Shores area for further precaution.
A drone was sent over the facility to locate the hotspot.
This chemical plant explosion is being investigated, and a one-mile evacuation zone has been declared, with a three-mile shelter-in-place order. The fire at a Symrise plant in Georgia was not caused by the company’s equipment, and the company has no reason to believe it will cause additional health hazards to the local community.