Thick brown and black smoke billowed into the Barrie sky as a recycling facility on Tiffin Street burned this morning, and is continuing this afternoon, as city firefighters and facility workers battle the blaze.
As of 2 p.m. Monday, much of the smoke was dissipating, but officials say it will continue to linger late into today as they bring the fire under control.
A Barrie Fire official previously said the fire was outside the building and involved several recycled vehicles.
Ladder trucks could be seen fighting the fire from high above as they brought streams of water down onto a large pile of burning metal and other materials at the scene in the city's west end.
The facility is All Ontario Recycling, located at 359 Tiffin St., not far from Highway 400.
At around 11 a.m., Barrie Fire responded with six units consisting of 20 firefighters, Platoon Chief Tony Farrell said at the scene.
The fire started in an area with a pile of metal, he added.
No injuries have been reported.
A young woman who identified herself as Emma was standing across the street from the site with worry on her face. She was at her home on Essa Road when she noticed the large plume of smoke.
“It was disgusting, like metal or acid or something. It smelled nasty,” she said.
Her home is in the path of the smoke plume.
Emma said her boyfriend works at the recycling plant and was assisting fire crews as he is a loader operator, removing debris from the fire as they fight it.
“He was at the pile when it first started, and they have no idea why (the fire started), but it just went up in flames. I’m just sitting around here waiting to see what’s happening," she said.
A man named Brad, who lives on Phillips Street next to the site and directly in the path of the heavy smoke, says “It’s pretty bad and it smells bad,” as visibility down his street is near zero due to the thick plume.
“That dump should be in the middle of nowhere, not in a residential area, I think,” he added.
An older woman pushes a stroller with an infant inside on Crawford Street a little farther away, but still in the smoke’s path. The air is heavy with an acrid plastic or chemical smell which is almost overwhelming.
She says she isn’t concerned about it, and keeps walking down the street.
“These days, everything has chemicals," the woman said.
Police said they evacuated nearby businesses and residents in the immediate area, according to police communications co-ordinator Peter Leon.
Police barricades and some closures are beginning to be removed, he added.
