UPDATE: Firefighters back at AERT facility

4:05 p.m. update After apparently extinguishing a fire earlier today at AERT's Lowell facility, firefighters returned this afternoon to extinguish a flareup. They were also spraying another tower.


Firefighters are struggling to extinguish a fire after an explosion in one of the silos at the Lowell Advanced Environmental Recycling Technologies plant Thursday.

The silo contained shredded plastic, which exploded after pressure built up, said Mike Morris, Lowell fire chief. He had gone to the plant in the morning after he heard a report of smoke. The explosion occurred at about 7:20 a.m., just a few minutes after he arrived at the plant, he said.

The Lowell Fire Department cannot put out the fire because it is in the bottom of the silo and can't be reached, Morris said. Fire trucks were still spraying water late into the morning to keep temperatures low in and around the silo.

"It's very difficult to put out," Morris said.

AERT has been working with the Lowell Fire Department to devise a plan to remove plastic from the silo, Morris said. The explosion occurred before they could execute the plan.

"This is what we were trying to avoid," he said.

A private contractor from Little Rock was expected to arrive at AERT early in the afternoon, Morris said. The contractor will work with the fire department to put out the flames.

Lowell Police Lt. Paul Pillaro said nobody was injured and everyone was accounted for.

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