Hazmat crews from Hamilton’s fire department were sent to a balloon factory in the city’s east end after four industrial drums of aluminum dust caught on fire.
The call went out at 12:35 p.m. Monday. While en route, authorities were advised that there may be water-reactive chemicals involved in the fire, prompting crews to call for hazardous material specialists.
No one was injured during the incident, but authorities had to use dry-chemical extinguishing agents to put out the fire.
When authorities arrived on scene, they discovered the source of the fire was inside a balloon manufacturing warehouse on Kenora Avenue.
Everyone inside the building had already evacuated, and those in charge of the facility informed officials that the fire contained aluminum dust — a highly combustible and sometimes explosive material.
Authorities say they extinguished the fire by using dry-chemical agents without further incident or damage to the building.
“The suspected cause is mechanical failure,” Deputy Fire Chief Dan Milovanovic told CHCH News. “The fire was contained to the containers and material with an estimated damage of $20,000.”
Kenora Avenue was temporarily closed during the incident but has since reopened.
.@HamiltonPolice continues to assist @HFD_Incidents in the area of Kenora Avenue and Barton Street East with road closures as it relates to an ongoing Fire investigation. PLEASE AVOID the area. #HamOnt https://t.co/4HzL3QGKGN
— Hamilton Police (@HamiltonPolice) February 5, 2024