Scrap Yard Fire In North Adams Grabs Communities Attention

It didn’t take long for the Facebook community to start sharing images of a giant smoke plume over downtown North Adams Tuesday morning. The smoke was the result of a fire at a local scrap yard. Many area residents saw the smoke and many others caught wind of what was happening after a robocall was sent out to area residents telling them to turn off their air conditioners, and local businesses to shut down their HVAC systems due to the smoke resulting from the fire.

According to a post of the North Adams City Hall Facebook page, at approximately 10:15 Tuesday morning the North Adams Fire Department responded to a reported car fire at the George Apkin and Sons, Inc. scrap yard off State Street in North Adams.

Upon arrival and initial assessment first responders determined that the fire was more significant than initially reported and that it was affecting multiple vehicles and material in the scrap yard. The firefighting operation was being supported by multiple mutual aid companies as well as by the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection’s air quality monitoring team and the state Hazardous Materials Emergency Response Division.

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Because of the significant amount of smoke produced by the fire, residents and businesses were advised to keep their air conditioners off, windows closed, and to remain indoors. Businesses were advised to keep their HVAC systems off.

Video below from the North Adams 911 Facebook Page:

Area residents were initially advised that the North Adams Fire Department was responding to a large fire off of State Street. Residents were advised to steer clear of the area. Residents were eventually requested to remain indoors with windows closed and HVAC and air conditioning off until further notice.

The video below is from the WWLP Facebook Page:

Images posted on the North Adams Chat Facebook Page:

North Adams Chat Facebook Page