INDIANAPOLIS — Residents on the southwest side of Indianapolis were asked to take precautions Friday as firefighters battled a blaze at a nearby scrap yard.
The Marion County Health Department asked people in a two-mile area to the south and southeast of the fire at OmniSource Recycling on South Holt Road to shelter in place and to turn off HVAC systems due to a two-mile smoke plume from the fire.
At around 10:30 p.m. Friday, firefighters declared the blaze under control and said they would continue to work throughout the night to fully cool and extinguish it.
The fire was first reported around 2:45 p.m. Friday at OmniSource and was quickly elevated to a two-alarm fire. Firefighters from Wayne and Decatur townships, Indianapolis, Speedway and the Indianapolis International Airport dealt with high winds and low water pressure as they tried to control the large fire, the Wayne Township Fire Department said in a release.
Workers with OmniSource used cranes to pull the scrap pile apart to assist firefighters.
Fire operations were completed around 3:30 a.m. Saturday.
Firefighters had advised drivers to avoid Raymond Street south of the plant as thick smoke brought visibility in the area to near zero.
No injuries have been reported to firefighters.
Five OmniSource employees were monitored for smoke inhalation.
