BARTOW COUNTY, Ga. -- Officials are still trying to determine the cause of a fire at a northwest Georgia power plant on Thursday.
While the cause of the fire remains unknown, a rep for Georgia Power said it appears to be the result of an equipment failure.
Fire officials said that the fire had been contained by 6 p.m. at Plant Bowen, located at 317 Covered Bridge Road.
Georgia Power, which owns the plant, said the fire began in the facility's switchyard. No flames were reported inside the plant itself. Georgia Power tweeted out a statement on the situation shortly after 11Alive broke the news of the fire.
#PlantBowen Update pic.twitter.com/TkkJ1jPtpb
— Georgia Power (@GeorgiaPower) July 13, 2017
Officials confirm that no one was injured in the situation. A spokesperson said they are monitoring the situation for the safety of employees.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Witnesses at the scene reported hearing fire alarms and seeing thick black smoke coming from the area.
Photos: Heavy smoke, fire reported at Plant Bowen
An employee at a nearby Dollar General told 11Alive, "I didn't hear an explosion, but I heard fire alarms over there...There is black smoke pouring out– pretty heavy."
Several people also tweeted photos from the scene.
Holy cow! Plant Bowen pic.twitter.com/bimv8yFnuc
— Cindy Jinks (@csjinks7) July 13, 2017
praying for families who work at plant bowen!!!! pic.twitter.com/4sVyrLcqDN
— amy moreno (@amalynnm) July 13, 2017
This is not the first time that emergency crews have responded to the plant for an incident. In October 2015, a contract worker sustained burns on both arms from an electrical arc between pieces of equipment.
In April 2013, a generator explosion at the plant injured two people. According to Georgia Power, that explosion occurred when Unit 2 was coming down for planned maintenance. None of the injuries were serious.
The investigation in the 2013 incident blamed human error and a breakdown in communication. OSHA fined Georgia Power $119,000.
