Fire razes recycling plant in Box Elder County

Deweyville • Thick smoke and the sound of small explosions filled the air Wednesday afternoon as a Box Elder County recycling plant burned to the ground.

Box Elder County Sheriff Lynn Yeates said the fire started about 1:45 p.m. at the Hillside Recycling Plant, 12090 North and State Road 38, as welders were working on an addition to the building while standing on a pile of plastic and wood.

He said the stack of materials caught fire and, in less than an hour, all that was left of the business — located about eight miles east of Tremonton — was its foundation.

"Burned the main building down to the ground," Yeates said.

Yeates said smoke from the blaze could be seen as far away as Brigham City. Authorities also received reports at the scene of small explosions coming from propane tanks and a blown transformer.

He said the business was in a rural part of Box Elder County and none of its industrial neighbors sustained damage.

Authorities estimated one million dollars in damage to the roughly 180-square-foot building. There were no injuries or fatalities in the fire.

Yeates said State Road 38 was closed early in the afternoon due to the fire and reopened a little before 6 p.m. Crews from several fire departments remained on scene until around 7 p.m., putting out the blaze until it went down enough to no longer be considered a threat to surrounding property. Owners of the building are monitoring the smoldering fire.

The investigation into the fire is ongoing.

Kristen Moulton and Cimaron Neugebauer contributed to this report. jstecklein@sltrib.com