OVERLAND, MO (KTVI-FOX2now.com)—
A massive fire in the Overland-Olivette area forced the evacuation of several businesses and apartments late Friday afternoon. Fire broke out at the North American Galvanizing Company at about 3:30. One worker who was inside says chemicals used to galvanize steel somehow leaked into the electrical system. Soon he said smoke began pouring out of the walls."There was what sounded like explosions inside the wall," Pedro Gonzalez said on the scene.
Gonzalez says there were about fifteen workers inside and all got out without incident.
It was after that the fire grew out of control. The massive plume of smoke could be seen for several miles. Three alarms were sounded and concern about possible toxicity in the smoke led to an evacuation of well over a hundred people in a two block area. Seventy-five workers from the Alpha Packaging company along with residents of a small apartment complex scurried up Page Industrial Drive. Many were on foot.
The evacuation lasted a little over an hour.
As of 6pm, the Olivette fire chief said the fire was still considered to be out of control. St. Louis County Haz-Mat was being called in to run a check on air quality.
Through the entire incident, no one had been reported injured.
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