MARS Horsecare fire spurs evacuation of residents near Dalton horse feed mill

Veronica Van Dress, The Daily Record
·2 min read
An evacuation and shelter-in-place advisory was lifted Saturday morning, however authorities were still cautioning residents to avoid the area near the MARS horse feed mill in Dalton where a fire broke out Friday. According to a post on the East Wayne Fire District Facebook page, officials were taking the precaution to keep people safe in case of a methane tank explosion.

DALTON – White smoke was still wafting from the rear of the MARS Horsecare facility Saturday morning, even after an evacuation and shelter in place advisory had been lifted.

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Residents were still being asked to avoid the area near the plant at 330 E. Schultz Ave., where, according to a post on the East Wayne Fire District Facebook page, a fire broke out Friday afternoon sending Dalton police, Wayne County sheriff's deputies and people from area fire agencies door-to-door within a 1,000 square-foot radius of the facility, asking people to leave their homes as a precautionary measure "because of the risk of an explosion of a methanol tank."

"The K building and the Red Cross will be assisting people and cots will be set up at The K, 100 Kurzen Road," the post reads.

Residents urged to avoid area near MARS facility in Dalton

A Saturday morning update on Facebook urged residents to "stay clear of the ... area as this is an ongoing incident." The post noted the evacuation and shelter-in-place advisory had been lifted.

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Several firetrucks remained at the scene Saturday morning but were parked a distance from the building. Orange cones and yellow caution tape marked the perimeter at streets and alleys to keep people away from the building.

Nobody was seen near the area that was cordoned off. Side streets and alleys in the northeast section of town near the plant remained closed Saturday morning while main roads were open.

The facility had sustained damage from a fire in October 2020, according to The Daily Record files, when a blaze broke out in the production area of the horse feed mill. Firefighters at that time managed to quickly knock it down as the fire had started to breech the roof.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Fire at Dalton's MARS Horsecare spurs evacuation of nearby residents