(Westville, IN) - Flames were shooting more than 100 feet into the air during the night in Westville as a pile of scrap metal about five stories high caught fire. Reports were that the fire could easily be seen from the Indiana Toll Road and other surrounding areas.

 

About 2:30 a.m., firefighters responded to Paul’s Auto Yard around 2:30 a.m. The fire was almost extinguished before 7 a.m., according to Coolspring Township Assistant Fire Chief Warren Smith. 

 

Smith said plastics were among the flammable materials in the big pile of metal, containing auto parts and what appeared to be a couple of old buses.

 

“There’s refrigerators, stoves, all kinds of plastics. Anything you can imagine is in this pile of scrap,” Smith said.

Smith didn’t see any junk cars or pick-up trucks.

 

Water was applied to the fire from an aerial ladder, and then once the fire was mostly extinguished, firefighters began putting out hot spots toward the bottom of the pile.

 

Smith said scrap metal at the junkyard is cut into smaller pieces with a torch. Chances are one of the pieces of metal being cut with the torch became hot enough yesterday to slowly catch the other materials on fire.

 

There were no injuries.