PHILLIPSBURG, NJ — Emergency crews responded to a three-alarm fire at the McWane Ductile Plant on Sunday morning.
Phillipsburg Police, Fire and EMS units were dispatched to the facility at 9:53 a.m. for a reported structure fire and explosion.
Upon arrival, the plant’s paint room at the southern end of the approximately 1,000-foot-long main manufacturing building was fully involved in fire.
The paint room is an area where finished pipe is coated with a paint-like substance as the final step in the manufacturing process.
The plant was in operation at the time of the fire, and McWane Ductile had safely evacuated and accounted for all employees upon arrival of the fire department.
All six Phillipsburg Fire Companies responded to the incident.
An additional ladder truck and engine responded from the Alpha Fire Department.
Harmony Township Fire Department responded with an engine and ladder to provide coverage in the event of additional incidents in town.
A Rapid Intervention Team from Good Will Fire Company in Belvidere also responded.
Firefighters faced cold weather challenges as the air temperature at the time of the fire was in the single digits.
Water froze almost instantly.
The fire was brought under control in about 30 minutes.
There were no reported injuries.
All water runoff from the fire was contained to plant property.
Warren County HazMat Team has been notified.
There is no immediate threat to the general public or area residents.
Jersey Central Power and Light, along with Elizabethtown Gas, responded with crews to isolate and disconnect utilities.
A cause and origin investigation is being conducted by the Phillipsburg Police Department, the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office and the State of New Jersey Division of Fire Safety.
There is no estimate of damage at this time.
