10AM: Tacoma firefighters remain on the scene of the fire at the foundry. At approximately 6:15 p.m. last night employees reported hearing a loud crack from above and saw one of the roof truss members had split. They began to evacuate the area when suddenly a portion of the roof collapsed into a "pit" area where excess metal is poured into sand to cool. The molten metal quickly ignited the roofing materials causing a large fire within the expansive fabrication facility. The fire has been contained to the original collapse zone, approximately a 50 x 50 area.
Given the additional collapse danger of the structure, a defensive operational strategy was implemented. Overnight, crews monitored the fire and controlled flair ups as the roofing material continued to burn itself down and the slag material cooled. The fire is under control, but hot spots remain in the debris pile. Heavy equipment will be brought in to remove the debris pile so crews can extinguish the remaining hot spots.
The cause of the roof collapse continues to be under investigation.
