HATFIELD – A fire broke out early Wednesday morning at USA Waste & Recycling. Multiple fire departments responded to the scene and put the blaze out.
Around 6 a.m, a fire started after a truck dumped recycling at the facility, located at 129 Elm St., according to USA Waste & Recycling site manager Kim Brodeur.
“Someone put something in a dumpster they shouldn’t have,” Brodeur said standing on the sidewalk on Elm Street.
Hatfield Fire Chief Stephen P. Gaughan said in a statement that the fire started in a load of recycling, and it is believed to be accidental.
Brodeur said she suspected something combustible in someone’s recycling sparked the fire. She and other workers at the scene used hoses and “every fire extinguisher we had” to try to keep the fire under control before firefighters arrived, she said.
After Hatfield and Whately firefighters arrived at the business, a second alarm was struck triggering help from other nearby towns.
The building where the fire broke out was filled with flammable materials, according to the Hatfield Fire Department.
“This large load of combustibles, combined with a subsequent high demand for water, led to an extensive overhaul and extinguishment process,” Gaughan stated. “A fire with this volume of fuel load, and this kind of heat, requires significant resources.”
By 9 a.m., the fire appeared to be under control. Trucks and vehicles were on the scene from fire departments in Conway, South Deerfield, Westhampton, Whately, Williamsburg, Hadley and Northampton. An ambulance and a representative from the state fire marshal’s office were also on the scene.
On Elm Street, a fire truck was attached to a fire hydrant and pumping water through a hose to the back of the building down a dirt road where the fire broke out. There, a backhoe pushed around a pile of wet, burned recycling that looked like mostly cardboard boxes and paper.
Elm Street was closed off by police officers.
Authorities said there were no injuries and that the building will be evaluated by the town’s building inspector. Brodeur said she expects the building did not sustain too much damage.
Greta Jochem can be reached at gjochem@gazettenet.com.