Multiple fire crews from the Missoula area responded to a large fire Sunday afternoon at Axmen Recycling, where more than 100 stacked cars burned in the wrecking yard with flames reaching up to 50 feet high.
The fire was reported just before 1 p.m. at the Wye. The initial cause was not clear.
Missoula Rural Fire District Battalion Chief Ron Lubke said crews arrived to find cars stacked 3 to 6 high and fully engulfed.
“They arrived to find a large pile of cars on fire, some cars anywhere from 3 to 6 stacked high. Probably we’re estimating at least 100 cars, possibly more, that were on fire. We had about 50 ft flames coming off the pile on arrival,” Lubke said.
Lubke said the fire involved cars that had not yet been processed by the recycling center, meaning oil, gas and other flammable fluids were still inside, adding to the intensity of the fire. Some tires and potentially fuel tanks were exploding at the scene. No injuries were reported.
Buildings on the property were threatened when crews arrived. “We did have some buildings that were threatened when we arrived. That was our priority was to keep the fire from getting into the buildings or into other piles of junk cars,” Lubke said.
KPAX-TV CBS/CW+ 8 Missoula
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