Sims Metal Fire’s Cause and Air-Quality Issues Remain Under Investigation

Lax noted that Sims has had several fire-mitigation measures in place, but details of those efforts were not immediately available.

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The cause of the recent fire at Sims Metal in Redwood City and whether the blaze resulted in pollution violations remains under investigation.

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) told this news organization that the agency was trying to determine whether the May 22 fire—whose thick, dark plume of smoke was seen for miles—violated any air-quality regulations.

Meanwhile, Sims planned to meet with city and fire officials to consider what measures “can be taken to prevent and mitigate potential future fires,” a company spokesperson said in an email to the Pulse. The meeting will also review any findings about the fire, the response to it and the company’s internal procedures.

“Sims takes every incident of this type seriously and in each instance investigates causation and considers how best to reduce the risks of future such incidents,” the spokesperson added.

According to BAAQMD, particle pollution rose rapidly over a large swath of the southern Peninsula in the immediate wake of the fire at the recycling center near the Port of Redwood City.

Levels of fine particulate matter “increased sharply in locations affected by the smoke plume, including but not limited to Sunnyvale, Mountain View, Cupertino, Saratoga and as far as Los Gatos,” BAAQMD spokesperson Ralph Borrmann said.

The levels peaked in those areas between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. “before decreasing as the fire was extinguished and the smoke dispersed,” Borrmann said.

But short-term peaks “can still be impactful,” he said, “and given the source of the fire, the smoke likely contained metals and other toxic air contaminants.”

No injuries were reported, but Borrmann said residents complained of smells ranging from chemical to burned plastic. One resident felt mild nausea for about 15 minutes, he said.

The Sims spokesperson said how exactly the fire started was still being investigated. But the Redwood City Fire Department has classified the incident “as undetermined,” Battalion Chief Chuck Lax said, “so we do not have a cause.”

Flames began in a pile of metal scraps being loaded into a shredder on the east side of the plant at 699 Seaport Blvd., Lax said.

The facility has experienced a number of fires over the years. BAAQMD is aware of six fires since 2007—those that occurred in January 2007, April 2007, November 2013, December 2013, March 2022 and last month, Borrmann said.

The trend in more recent years seemed “to indicate the fires are smaller and of shorter duration,” Borrmann said.

However, the March 2022 fire triggered several explosions, damaged multiple vehicles and injured a worker. Soon after this incident, the state ordered Sims to check on the degree to which its operations may have caused pollution in the surrounding communities and to perform cleanup.

Lax noted that Sims has had several fire-mitigation measures in place, but details of those efforts were not immediately available.

“Sims remains committed to ongoing engagement with authorities and our local communities and to being a good neighbor and environmental steward,” the company spokesperson said.

Sims operates more than 200 centers worldwide that process scrap metal bought from other businesses and recyclers, the company website said.

 Courtesy: www.rwcpulse.com

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