HOUSTON — A fire broke out Monday afternoon at a metal recycling facility in southeast Houston, sending a large plume of smoke into the air as firefighters worked to contain the blaze.
The Houston Fire Department dispatched units to Mammoth Metal Recycling at 770 Kellogg St. after receiving reports of the fire at 2:55 p.m., according to emergency radio traffic.
Houston Fire Chief Thomas Muñoz said at a news briefing near the scene that authorities had not ordered evacuations and had not received reports of injuries as of about 4 p.m.
“What I understand is it’s a pretty big field that goes a long way. We’re trying to get the estimates right now on how large exactly that is,” Muñoz said. “Like I said, a lot of tires are out there.”
Muñoz said officials did not believe the fire posed an immediate threat to nearby homes.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality was monitoring the incident, he added.
Authorities had not determined the cause of the fire as of Monday afternoon.
Susan Martinez, who lives across the street from the facility, said she saw the smoke while driving home on the freeway.
“I have asthma, and I’m worried about the air quality and stuff, and I have a little daughter too, so that’s really concerning,” Martinez said.
At a second news conference around 5 p.m., Muñoz said firefighters would likely continue battling the blaze overnight and that officials did not have an estimate for when it would be extinguished.
About 100 firefighters were at the scene as of 5 p.m., according to Muñoz.
