Massive Fire At Mueller Industries In Wynne (updated)

A massive fire in Wynne, Arkansas has consumed one of three factory buildings of Mueller Industries, a local plastics maker.

Our content partner, Fox 16 News, has video of the fire and files this report:

Bob Stacy, the mayor of Wynne, says the fire started just after 5pm Wednesday at the Mueller Industries plant.

Of the three buildings at the factory, only one of them caught fire — the one that made plastic fittings and installation.

Stacy says the environmental protection agency is on site due to all the oil materials kept inside the building.

He says fire crews will be out all night long fighting hot spots.

The mayor says thankfully no one was injured in the fire and there were no evacuations in the surrounding neighborhoods. But he says the flames demolished that one building.

You can access the full report at this link.

UPDATE: Mueller Industries issued this statement regarding the fire at its Wynne facility:

Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE: MLI) announced that one of its manufacturing plants located in Wynne, Arkansas, was damaged by fire Tuesday evening.  All employees were safely evacuated without injury.  The extent of the damage is presently being assessed.  The fire was contained to one of three buildings on the site.  The damage was limited to the (i) production of PVC plastic fittings for DWV applications, (ii) fabrication of line sets for air conditioning applications, and (iii) the casting operations for copper tube.

The Company has implemented plans to reallocate production to other Mueller facilities as well as securing third party sourcing arrangements.  Along with existing inventories, the Company expects to provide ongoing and reliable supply to its customers.  Our distribution center is operating normally.

Approximately 465 persons are employed at the site of which approximately 170 have been notified of indefinite lay-off.  The duration of the lay-off will be determined in due course.

The safety of the employees was protected as a result of the swift implementation of building evacuation protocols and the rapid response by emergency personnel in Wynne and the surrounding area.

The losses, both property damage and business interruption, are expected to be covered by existing insurance policies and programs.  Therefore, the Company believes that the impact of the fire on the Company’s financial results should be immaterial.