KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Firefighters in Tennessee have evacuated about 70 homes near a fire at a recycling center.
News outlets said thick black smoke was spewing from the Fort Loudon Waste & Recycling Center in north Knoxville. Authorities warned against breathing the smoke. Knoxville Fire Department Capt. D.J. Corcoran said the center’s 25 employees have been accounted for with no injuries.
Fire officials recommend anyone near the fire leave or turn off air conditioning and stay inside. The Knox County Health Department warned residents to leave the area if they can see or smell smoke.
The fire was reported around 1 p.m. Wednesday. Fire crews said the fire is burning mostly through paper and plastics.
Corcoran said the cause of the fire hasn’t been determined, but an owner told officials he thought it might have started from a piece of equipment backfiring.