An aerial ladder is used to direct water onto the burning production hall at REALCO in Belgium.
Screen capture via RTBF
Toxic fumes were the principal concern after a fire Friday morning at a factory in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, making enzyme-based hygiene products.
“Environmental police will continue to watch over rivers in the days to come,” a post on the city government website states.
Flames extensively damaged the production hall at the REALCO plant, located in the city’s science park, the website states. However, the research and development center and the administrative building were spared.
Management reports that the company’s inventory was lost in the fire.
Although air monitoring determined the smoke to be non-toxic emergency responders established a security perimeter around the fire to keep spectators away. Traffic was shut down on the main street through the science park.
Officials were also concerned about the risk of contaminated firewater runoff reaching local waterways.
“The environment police have assessed the possible pollution from runoff and found no problem,” the website states.
The municipal emergency plan, in place since 7:15 a.m., was lifted by municipal officials at 6:30 p.m.
As the plant was closed when the fire broke out, no casualties were reported.
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