A fire has been raging since Friday evening at the Horne foundry in Rouyn-Noranda, mobilizing nearly thirty firefighters in the anode sector of the metallurgical plant, where there is molten metal.
The fire broke out around 5:40 p.m., when employees were inside the building. However, the company does not report any injuries and the fire is believed to be contained in an area of the factory, indicates the Horne foundry on its Facebook page. However, three people were affected by the smoke.
“Firefighters are still on site and in fact, at the latest news, firefighters were able to enter the building,” said Cindy Caouette, a spokesperson for Glencore, the multinational company that owns the Horne smelter, in an interview. She also assures that this fire will not affect air quality in the city of Rouyn-Noranda, since the fire is located in the copper anode sector.
“There are no toxic products or chemicals involved in the fire, it’s really the building that is affected,” she says. As for the extent of the material damage that this fire could cause, it is too much to make a prediction, adds the spokesperson. “Several hours” will however be necessary to control this fire, the company said on social networks, shortly before 8 p.m.
The City of Rouyn-Noranda also wanted to reassure the population by specifying on social networks that this fire does not involve “hazardous materials”. She also specifies that 28 firefighters from the municipality’s fire safety service are hard at work to put out the flames.
The causes of the fire remain unknown.
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