No injuries reported after explosion, chemical fire at Geneva factory
No one was injured after an explosion and chemical fire Tuesday afternoon at a Geneva factory, according to Geneva Fire Department officials.
Firefighters arrived around 1:33 p.m. at Olon Industries, 411 Union St., on Geneva’s near West Side for an activated fire alarm, Geneva Fire Department officials said in a press release. Upon arrival, facility workers told fire crews there had been an explosion in the chemical storage building at the site.
The fire was elevated to a first-level fire alarm and a hazardous materials alarm to bring additional firefighters and equipment to the scene, officials said in the release.
The cause of the explosion and fire remains under investigation, officials said.
Damage to the facility was limited to a 16-foot by 16-foot chemical storage building located to the rear of the factory, according to the release.
The fire was extinguished by 4:25 p.m. and there was no known hazard to the community, officials said.
As a precaution, people were evacuated from Wheeler Park, the Geneva Township Senior Center and the Geneva Park District office during the fire, according to the release. Employees at the factory had already exited the building after the fire alarm had been activated during the incident, officials said.
Notifications were made to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration about the explosion and fire.
Firefighters from Batavia, St. Charles, Elburn, North Aurora, Sugar Grove, Aurora, Montgomery, West Chicago, Fermilab, Sugar Grove, Elgin, Carol Stream, South Elgin and Bartlett assisted at the scene, officials said.
The Winfield, Wheaton, Fox River & Countryside and Sugar Grove fire departments filled in at the Geneva fire stations and responded to other calls in the community, according to officials.
