That’s no tornado. Ominous cloud of smoke rises from warehouse fire near Asheville
A massive pillar of black smoke rose into the sky over Asheville on Tuesday, trailing up from a three-alarm warehouse fire.
Crews with the Asheville Fire Department joined with Buncombe County firefighters to battle the blaze, the department said, sharing video of the dark smoke cloud taken on approach.
AFD is assisting @buncombeGov fire departments with a third alarm warehouse fire at the MSD treatment center off Riverside Dr. pic.twitter.com/YY0cigOLFB
— ASHEVILLE FIRE DEPT (@AshevilleFD) November 10, 2020
The warehouse is owned by the Metropolitan Sewerage District, outlets report, and is near a sewage treatment plant.
Another clip from the scene shows just how close the fire is to the treatment center.
Some photos taken at a distance better capture the size of the cloud looming overhead, ominous and tornadic.
Sewage Plant fire this evening in Asheville via Micah Mackenzie https://t.co/B1pJkGkIqt pic.twitter.com/V9EhQQWdNF
— Brad Panovich (@wxbrad) November 10, 2020
Authorities don’t yet know what caused the fire but said nobody was in the building when it began, WLOS reported.
Crews from about 20 different departments are responding to the emergency, an MSD official told the station.
A massive warehouse fire is currently blazing on Riverside Dr. in Asheville, NC. Reports are that it is a warehouse above MSD. #ncwx pic.twitter.com/shmhl3hDsR
— AshevilleWX (@Hvward) November 10, 2020
The fire was first reported around 3:30 p.m., according to the Asheville Citizen Times, and the smoke could soon be seen for miles.
Authorities said no hazardous materials are stored in the warehouse, the Citizen Times reported.
