Photos: Fire Breaks Out At Commerce Recycling Plant

A two-alarm fire broke out at a cardboard recycling plant in the City of Commerce at around 2:10 p.m. on Friday afternoon. By 3:30 p.m., most of the fire has been put out, though the Los Angeles County Fire Department tells LAist that there is still some heavy smoldering, and that people should expect to see at least some smoke for another several hours. The fire is located in the 5000 block of 61st Street, close to its intersection with Eastern Avenue.

Richard Licon, a Fire Fighter Specialist with LACFD, explained to LAist how firefighters were on the scene by about 2:15 p.m. First reported as a commercial blaze, they learned upon arrival that the building was a cardboard recycling plant. The volume of cardboard resulted in a heavy black smoke, visible for miles around.

Approximately 100 firefighters responded to the fire, dousing the flames with both water and fire retardant foam. One firefighter was injured while trying to extinguish the fire, and was transported to a nearby hospital. No injuries were reported among the recycling plant's employees.

Curiously, another cardboard recycling plan fire broke out at almost exactly this same time last week. As KPCC reports, a plant in Ontario caught fire on Friday, October 21.

Smoke from the fire is widely visible across Southern California: