RIPLEY, TN -
(WMC-TV) – A plastics factory went up in flames early Tuesday morning in Ripley, Tennessee.
Fire crews from Ripley, Henning, West Lauderdale, and Covington all showed up to the Allied Plastics factory to fight the fire. The company recycles industrial plastics.
The Ripley fire chief said they do not know what caused the fire yet, but there was a large amount of plastics being stored at the plant.
"Inside the building, there's probably four to five million pounds of plastic, and so that plastic catches fire and burns and burns," said Will Douglas, who owns the company.
Smoke could be seen and smelled for miles. The fire chief said they will likely be on the scene well into the night putting out hot spots to make sure it does not flare up again.
Ripley's police chief says one of the city's water towers is being renovated, which caused a water shortage while fighting the fire.
"We got here this morning and saw flames coming out of the roof," said Douglas.
Douglas says he plans to rebuild as soon as he can. Crews were already starting to demolish the building around noon. Firefighters say that is the only way they could get the fire contained.
"My first concern when I got here was my employees. This is a very depressed community and every job counts. I worry about them and their families," said Douglas.
He says his employees will keep their jobs despite losing the building.
Nobody was injured in the fire.
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Massive smoke cloud coming from fire
