Dive Brief:
- About 50 residents of Rio Grande City, TX were evacuated from their Las Lomas neighborhood Saturday evening after a massive fire at the Fiber Management of Texas paper recycling plant snowed ash. At least one home was damaged by the fire.
- Residents were evacuated "due to the thick smoke and ash that is making it difficult to breathe," according to Starr County Precinct 4 Commissioner Ruben D. Saenz. He added that hot spots in the fire might not be completely extinguished until Tuesday, according to fire officials.
- There was no word on what started the blaze, which broke out at 4 a.m. Saturday.
Dive Insight:
Keeping residents in the Las Lomas neighborhood safe is the first concern. When the Rio Grande City fire is completely extinguished and air quality is assured, investigators can determine the cause and how to prevent future fires. In the mean time, the city is working to give displaced residents shelter, which has been a difficult process due to a lack of volunteers.
Fires at recycling plants have been a problem at many facilities in states across the nation, including Michigan, Ohio and others.