Marcal Paper Mill Fire In Elmwood Park, New Jersey, Under Control

UPDATE: 10:58 p.m. EST — Rob Baron, president and CEO of Soundview Paper Company — which owns Marcal paper Mill — issued a statement that said, “On Wednesday afternoon, a devastating fire engulfed our mill in Elmwood Park. In the hours that followed, first responders from multiple surrounding communities exhibited extraordinary bravery, commitment and skill0 risking their lives fighting this terrible blaze in frigid conditions.”

He also said the extent of damage to the facility was unknown.

“Our top priority in the coming days and weeks will be to support our associates at Marcal whose lives will be directly impacted by this disaster,” he said.

Original story:

More than 100 firefighters battled a massive fire that consumed a paper plant complex in Elmwood Park, a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey. Authorities said that seven fire alarms rang as the flames blazed through the Marcal Paper Mill building, causing the iconic Marcal Paper sign to topple over.

The fire broke out around 5:15 p.m. EST and prompted an extensive response from all the fire stations in the area. Initially, the fire was restricted to a single building but constant winds caused it to move in the direction of nearby businesses and homes. Elmwood Park Police Chief Michael Foligno, however, assured people there were fire crews keeping an eye on the area. Owing to safety issues, all the nearby businesses were forced to close early, northjersey.com reported.

Foligno stated at a press conference the building housed several paper products, including large paper rolls. After the fire started, it didn’t take long for the roof of the building to collapse, which happened by 6:30 p.m. EST.

While no injuries were reported, firefighters struggled to put the fire out due to the cold weather and the visibility issues caused by the large amounts of smoke. There were about 200 workers inside the building when the fire broke out, but they were all evacuated safely.

“The wind is not helping, and the cold is causing the fire to spread rapidly. The cold slows you down and it causes it to be more difficult to fight the fire,” Foligno said. The “whipping winds” caused the flames to spread rapidly, he further said.

“It’s freezing. Firefighters are dealing with water on their faces and on their hands; it’s spraying all over you. Regardless of your equipment, it impacts you and slows you down,” Foligno told reporters.

Officials also closed the ramp for Exit 61 on I-80 due to heavy smoke that was billowing toward the highway. According to some drivers on the road, they could feel the heat emanating from the fire all the way inside their cars.

Mayor Frank Caramagna said, “It looks very bad — the building will probably be completely destroyed.” He further said that by 7:30 p.m. EST, fire departments from more than 10 towns had responded to the scene and that they had to partially close the street which has the mill entrance as “more and more fire trucks from many different departments reached the scene.”

The cause of the fire was not immediately known.

This is a developing story.