Accumulated residue in a long-idled exhaust system caught fire Thursday as Anchor Glass Container Corp. plant workers began to restart the equipment.
Fire companies from both Fayette and Westmoreland counties were dispatched to the plant at about 2 p.m. and quickly contained the blaze.
Michael McCartney, plant general manager, said no one was injured during the incident.
"We had a minor fire inside a stack that exhausts air from a decorating lehr," said McCartney. "The lehr has been idle for about a year-and-a-half; the exhaust burns off the residual paraffins when we decorate the bottles.
"There was apparently some residual up in the stack."
The fire was contained within the stack and a nearby blower, added McCartney, and the plant incurred no structural damage.
"We were very appreciative of the quick response by the fire departments and the paramedics," he said. "Everyone was on scene immediately."
The borough plant is one of nine Anchor Glass Container Corp. plants in the U.S., according to the corporate Web site. The manufacturer is the third largest producer of glass containers for various food and beverage products.
Fire companies responding to the incident included South Connellsville, Flatwoods, Bullskin, North Union, Perry Township, Morrell, Everson, Dunbar, Dawson, DL&V, New Haven, Mount Pleasant and Scottdale. Fayette EMS also was dispatched to the scene.
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