AP/Lang
12/9/22
Firefighters have finally extinguished a fire that tore through an asphalt shingle recycling plant at Marengo and sent almost a half-dozen people to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.
Marengo Police Chief Ben Gray says firefighters worked until 4 a.m. Friday to extinguish the fire. The blaze broke out following an explosion at the C6-Zero plant shortly after 11 a.m. Thursday. C6-Zero recycles used asphalt shingles into biofuel. As the fire spread, firefighters from Tiffin, Oxford, Coralville, Hills, Brooklyn and Grinnell arrived for mutual aid.
Residents near the plant were evacuated, and the Iowa County Sheriff’s Office advised people who live at a safe distance to stay indoors to avoid exposure to smoke. Evacuees were housed at the Marengo American Legion hall and the Iowa County Transportation building until it was deemed safe for them to return home.
Gray says five people were taken by ambulances to the UIHC and others were driven to hospitals in private vehicles. He did not have an exact count of the number of people injured and did not answer questions about what caused the explosion.