Fire investigators in Winston-Salem, N.C., started combing the ruins of the Winston Weaver Co. fertilizer plant on Feb. 7, searching for clues into the origin of the Jan. 31 fire that destroyed the 65,423-square-foot facility and prompted a three-day evacuation order for some 6,500 nearby residents due to concerns about a possible explosion triggered by ammonium nitrate.
Investigators with the Winston-Salem Fire Department and the Office of the State Fire Marshal were reportedly onsite during the week. The North Carolina Department of Labor confirmed that its Division of Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) is also conducting an investigation into the cause and whether safety or health standards were violated, the Winston-Salem Journal reported.
Officials reduced the evacuation zone around the burned plant to a radius of 275 feet at 8 p.m. on Feb. 6, down from a radius of 660 feet that had been in effect since Feb. 3. An initial evacuation zone was enforced for residents and businesses within a one-mile radius of the plant and was in effect from late Jan. 31 to 8 p.m. on Feb. 3, affecting approximately 2,497 households. The smaller 275-foot evacuation zone was still in effect on Feb. 11.
Concerns remained about possible flare-ups as the excavation process continues. Local authorities reported earlier that 500 tons of ammonium nitrate, as well as a reported 5,000 tons of finished fertilizer products, were stored in the facility at the time of the fire. An additional 90 tons of ammonium nitrate was also onsite in a railcar.
Efforts to contact Winston Weaver or its parent, Meherrin Fertilizer Inc., for comment were unsuccessful.
According to local news outlets, Winston Weaver has donated $50,000 to the nonprofit group Love out Loud to reimburse individuals and families who were forced to evacuate to hotels because of the fire. The company has also given $25,000 to Second Harvest Food Bank and has earmarked an additional $25,000 to help residents impacted by the fire.
At a press conference on Feb. 9, Winston-Salem Fire Chief Trey Mayo said investigators “have an idea of where we believe the fire began,” but he provided no further details, saying he did not want to “corrupt” the ongoing investigation. He pushed back, however, on reports that the fire started at a loading dock at the site and was observed by an employee who reported the fire.
“I do not believe the fire began in the loading dock area,” he said. “Smoke may have been coming from the loading dock when the employee reported it. I don’t know yet what that correlation is between where we believe the fire began and the location of the loading dock. And I do not know specifics about how close the employee who reported the fire was to where the fire was burning at the time of report.”
Mayo also downplayed reports that an earlier fire call to the Winston Weaver plant on Dec. 26, 2021, was related to the Jan. 31 fire. The Winston-Salem Journal, citing a Winston-Salem Fire Department incident report that the newspaper obtained through a public records request, said fire crews were called to the facility in December to deal with a smoldering pile of “fertilizer material.”
Firefighters determined that an overheated bearing in a piece of electrical equipment dropped “hot materials into the pile.” They flooded the area with water, according to the report, and “at no point did the pile produce any flames or fire damage.”
In response to questions from reporters, Mayo on Feb. 9 said the Dec. 26 incident was “remote” from where investigators believe the Jan. 31 fire started. “They are a pretty good distance away in the plant, so we do not believe that those two incidents are related,” he said.
WGHP, the local Fox-affiliated television station, reported that a lawsuit was filed against Winston Weaver on Feb. 3 by local attorney Kathleen Q. DuBois alleging that the company was negligent in operational procedures and failed to follow safety precautions. The lawsuit further alleges that the fire and evacuation led DuBois to face property losses and negative health effects.
According to WGHP, the lawsuit calls for a temporary restraining order to make sure all company documents, video, and materials related to the fire are preserved. An additional unnamed defendant, referred to as John Doe, is also named in the lawsuit and is reportedly a stand-in representing one or more employees who may have been responsible for the incident, WGHP reported.
Crumley Roberts, the Asheboro, N.C., law firm where DuBois is employed, said DuBois plans to donate any recovery from the lawsuit to victims’ aid funds that may be established in the coming weeks, WGHP reported.