Southington Metal Supplier Evacuated After Fire: SFD

SOUTHINGTON, CT — A Southington-based industrial metal supplier was evacuated Wednesday after a hopper containing metal dust caught fire and created a hazmat situation.

The Southington Fire Department, along with mutual aid units, were called to Yarde Metals on 45 Newell St. at about 1:40 p.m. for a report of smoke in the facility and a fire alarm activation.

Several SFD units arrived on the scene and noticed that heavy, gray smoke and fire were coming from an exterior dust collection system on the side of the building, the SFD wrote in a release issued Thursday morning.

With heavy smoke filling the building, crews entered the facility and made sure all employees were out and safe, fire officials wrote.

Also called to assist were mutual aid crews from Bristol, with the Plainville and Cheshire fire departments covering for Southington units at the scene.

According to the SFD, firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze in the hopper, which contained aluminum and stainless steel chips and dust.

The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection's Emergency Response Team was notified and responded.

Meanwhile, a Bristol Fire Department crew was called to use its large ventilation fan to remove smoke from the inside of the building.

"Fire crews rotated through interior positions, fire attack, and rehab," wrote the SFD. "The fire was contained to the machine and extinguished. No firefighter injuries occurred."

The SFD said the Southington Fire Marshal's Office is investigating the blaze.

Yarde Metals supplies raw metals to a variety of industrial clients and its inventory includes aluminum, copper, stainless steel, carbon, and brass in various forms such as rods, sheets, rolls, pipes, and plates.

For more information on Yarde Metals in Southington, click on this link.