CONYERS, Ga. — Evacuations and shelter-in-place orders are in effect after a large, intense fire broke out at a chemical plant in Conyers, Sunday.
According to officials, the fire was sparked after a sprinkler malfunctioned around 5 a.m. at the BioLab facility off Old Covington Road and reacted with a "water-reactive chemical," though officials have not given specifics on what exactly that chemical is.
The facility makes pool and spa treatments, and the chemicals involved in that process appeared to exacerbate the fire and send up huge smoke clouds. Residents in the area near the plant shared images and videos of the ominous plumes of smoke, which could be seen for miles.
Fire at Rockdale County BioLab | Images
The plume of smoke was also picked up on radar.
Some residents of Conyers, a little more than 20 miles from Atlanta, also shared what appeared to be debris from the fire from miles away. It's unclear what exactly the debris is.
Emergency crews had contained the fire Sunday morning, but the fire later reignited around noon, according to authorities. It was re-contained around 3:30-4 p.m. on Sunday, but multiple roads in Rockdale County remain closed due to the incident.
Right now, no injuries have been reported.
Officials are now working to remove the reactive material from the plant, though they noted that the process could take several hours. The EPA is also expected to be on-site to test the area's air quality. Once those tests have been made, Rockdale authorities will notify residents when they can return to their homes.
One resident 11Alive spoke to, who lives less than a mile from the facility, said she was asked to evacuate around 7 a.m. Sunday morning.
"I was startled, I was very, very startled," she told 11Alive's Cheryl Preheim. "They were banging very hard and loud, and they were screaming...They were just trying to wake everybody up in the neighborhood."
Rockdale officials stated this is the third incident at the facility in seven years. Residents with further questions can visit rockdalecounty.gov or call the Rockdale County Emergency Management hotline at 770-278-8300.