Billowing Smoke Causes IC Landfill to Close for the Day: Iowa City Landfill Fire Update

The City of Iowa City has announced that the will be closed today due to the smoke produced by the landfill fire changing directions.

According to a city news release, smoke from the fire is being blown toward the landfill's administrative offices and scalehouse, forcing the landfill to close. Commercial haulers with trash to dump are advised to deliver to the Cedar Rapids Linn County Solid Waste Agency located at 1954 County Home Road, Marion.

The landfill is supposed to reopen on Friday.

The landfill fire is nearing the completion of its second week of burning since it of Memorial Day weekend.

The city has since instituted a strategy called "stir, burn, and cover" where the rubber tire layer that is still ablaze will be stirred by heavy machinery, causing it too burn out faster, and then covered with clay earth.

Mark Carlson of KCRG reports that more than 30 percent of the 7.5 acres of burning rubber has been covered with this method, which is on schedule to be completed by next week. It was delayed, however, also by a shift in the wind:

Fruin said the fire could be completely covered by early next week, if weather conditions don’t cause problems. Thursday morning things were put on hold because winds were blowing smoke in the directions of Coralville and North Liberty.

Fire is burning the rubber base of the landfill. It started after someone dropped off “a hot load of something,” according to fire chief Andy Rocca.