Area fire departments battle blazes
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The Missouri State Highway Patrol closes a portion of Highway 136 on Monday after a fire in Phelps City.
Area fire departments battled blazes throughout the region Monday morning into the evening hours.
A fire at a tire recycling plant near Rock Port led the temporary closure of Highway 136 near Phelps City in the early morning hours of Monday.
The Rock Port Fire Department were called to a structure fire at 13974 U.S. Highway 136 at EnTire Recycling, Inc. around 11 p.m. A 3.1 mile stretch of Highway 136 was closed as of 1:30 a.m. due to heavy smoke.
The smoke from the fire led to the Missouri Department of Transportation to shut down a portion of the highway west of Rock Port near Brownville.
According to MoDOT spokesperson Marsha Johnson the agency put signs out of Interstate 29 warning drivers to find alternate routes. In Nebraska, it would be taking the Nebraska City exit, while in Missouri it would be at the Mound City exits.
Traffic off of Highway 136 were diverted north on Missouri Route D up to Watson. Johnson said the road could be closed for a couple of days, depending on when and how long the fire burns.
The heavy smoke also caused Gavilon Grain to close on Monday.
By mid-day, Atchison County Sheriff’s Department, Rock Port fire and the Highway Patrol was still near the scene. Heavy winds caused issues for the firefighters trying to put out the fire.
EnTire turns old tires into rubber used for athletic fields, playgrounds and molded mats. Found in 1995, the company used crumb rubber to turf the field at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln. Since then, the business had supplied the rubber for hundreds of football and soccer stadiums.
Later in the day, near Parnell, high winds — in excessive of 40 miles hours at the time — played a part in starting a grass fire off of Dogwood Avenue, located off of State Route W.
According to Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper J.D. Farmer, winds blew a part of a roof off a metal building. That hit a power line and the spark started a grass fire that crews battled for most of Monday afternoon near the county lines of Nodaway and Worth.
Agencies at the fire included the Nodaway County Sheriff’s, Sheridan Fire District, Jackson Township Fire District and Maryville Public Safety assists. Due to smoke caused by blowing winds, a portion of Route W was closed off by the sheriff’s department.
Late in the afternoon, the Hopkins Fire Protection District responded to a shed on fire.