Fire crews working to contain Hartsville plant fire

HARTSVILLE -- Fire crews are still on the scene Tuesday at the Hartsville Rainbow Operations Plant. The fire units are still in containment mode, according to Hartsville Police Department's Lt. Brian Rudick's press release. The site is still too hot for investigators to enter the  buildings. 

South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are on scene and are assessing any environmental impact the fire and the fire suppression efforts will have on the lake and local ecology.  DHEC determined early this morning that the smoke from the fire does not pose a threat to public health, according to Rudick. 

Firefighters from at least three counties and close to a dozen departments battled the fertilizer plant fire -- including explosions -- that began shortly before 7 p.m. Monday.

The plant, also known as the Royster-Clark plant, is part of agricultural services conglomerate Agrium, manufactures Rainbow NPK fertilizer and is capable of making up to 78,400 tons of fertilizer a year, according to the company’s website.

Hartsville Mayor Mel Pennington said the factory employed about 60 people.

"Life goes on in Hartsville," said Mayor Pennington early Tuesday. "It's tough for these families, 60 some odd people who are now out of work this morning and their families are counting on paying bills, it's a tough thing for our community," he said.

Officials at Monday night's press conference said the fire started at 6:47 p.m.,  and officials activated state firefighter system to bring mutual aid from across state.

DHEC inspectors spent most of the night working on the scene, to monitor air quality and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials responded from Atlanta.

There were seven people in the plant when the fire started, officials said.

After the initial fire and explosions, flames quickly spread through surrounding woods, according to reports. The fire brigade from nearby Sonoco Products Co. was put on alert to protect its plant.

The Sonoco plant was shut down and evacuated with just the fire brigade on site, according to broadcast information.

“As we were coming down the hill, you could see the orange and the smoke and we finally got here and it was just billows of smoke and the fire was amazingly huge, it was huge,” Hartsville resident Debbie Kelley said.

There have been no reported injuries so far. A spokesman for Carolina Pines Regional Medical Center in Hartsville said the emergency room is fully staffed but one from the scene came in for treatment.

The American Red Cross said city of Hartsville officials opened a shelter, where about 30 people spent the night.

Hazardous materials and fumes from the fire are the prime concern facing city officials.

“Obviously because of the Hazmat concerns, we’ve got fire units from all across the Pee Dee area and law enforcement (responding),” Hartsville Police Lt. Brian Rudick said.

“Because of the possibility of shifting winds, we’ve closed down a large area, trying to keep traffic to a minimum in and around the scene itself.

“We can’t control the wind. Right now it appears that it’s all gonna be from one direction, but that can shift at anytime so we’re just preparing,” he said.

Darlington County Sheriff’s Capt. Andy Locklair said neighborhoods along Society Avenue and Patrick Highway were evacuated in a voluntary effort.  The residents were allowed back to their homes early Tuesday.

Images from the scene showed flames towering above aerial trucks fighting the blaze.

Jason Hopkins reported on WBTW News13’s Facebook page that a large ball of smoke lit by fire was visible and loud explosions could be heard from a distance.

“We came on up here to find out what was going on and we heard a couple of really bad explosions and the sky was all orange and stuff ... it was pretty scary,” Hartsville resident Herbie Kelley said. “I’ve heard a lot of explosions and this sounded like big propane tanks. It was pretty bad.”

Officials at the scene have called for Hazmat response, according to broadcast traffic.

“I’m happy that everybody got out and hopefully is safe and with their families at home and I hope we'll be able to recuperate. Hartsville is a strong city and we’ll be able to come back from this with no problems at all,” Debbie Kelley said.

In addition to Hartsville Fire Department personnel, units from Sonoco’s fire brigade, Darlington, Darlington County, Florence, West Florence, Windy Hill, Howe Springs, Lee County and Alligator Rural fire departments are either fighting the fire or standing by for additional response within the city.

By 8 p.m., according to witnesses, not much remained of the plant.