Just before 7:00 Wednesday morning LFR Crews were called to a recycling center southwest of Downtown. Public Information Officer MJ Lierman says employees of Recycle LNK near South 4th and “J” Street were inside the building when the fire broke out.
“Crews were working to put some of the cardboard in the recycling area and they heard a pop and noticed smoke coming from the cardboard pile.” While the exact cause of the fire is unknown, Lierman says it was most likely due to a vape cartridge type battery getting smashed during the compacting process.
“That can cause an ignition source and causes the fire to spread through that cardboard.” Lierman says the sprinklers were activated and firefighters arrived on scene and used foam to bring it under control. No one was hurt.