ROGERS -- Demolition work caused a fire at the former plant of Superior Industries, 1301 N. Dixieland Road, about 10:27 a.m. Monday.
The fire on the roof was caused by sparks inside the building, said Tom Jenkins, fire chief.
"There was a lot of visible smoke but really not a lot of damage to the structure itself," Jenkins said.
Firefighters saw black smoke coming from the building and fire coming from a ventilation system on the roof when they first arrived, said David Whitlow, battalion chief.
Workers had been using a cutting torch to dismantle equipment inside the building, Whitlow said. Sparks got into the duct system, igniting residual magnesium and aluminum dust. The ventilation ducts are large.
"One is big enough to drive a car down," Whitlow said.
Workers at the plant called 911.
The rooftop fire was put out quickly but firefighters had to take apart some of the vents to reach the fire and to make sure it was out. Crews were on scene for a couple hours, Whitlow said.
Firefighters used both ladder trucks to spray water from above and pulled hoses into the building to fight fire there, Jenkins said. The combination worked well to get the fire contained, he said.
Although there was an extra ambulance crew working Monday due to weather, Lowell Fire Department was called in to answer calls in south Rogers.
The two-alarm fire involved four fire engines, two ladder trucks, a rescue vehicle and ambulance, Jenkins said. The department had other calls during the incident, including a wreck on Interstate 49.
Superior Industries announced July 30 that it would close the Rogers plant.
NW News on 02/17/2015