KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Fire crews continue to battle massive fire at the Fort Loudon Waste and Recycling Center, which could potentially take days to extinguish.
"It's a big trash fire," said Knoxville Fire Capt. DJ Corcoran.
He said paper, cardboard, rubble and plastic are burning, which is what the company recycles. The burning plastic is what's causing that heavy, black smoke that can be seen for miles.
As they adapt their tactics to put out the 2-alarm fire, firefighters are keeping a close eye on the wind and rain conditions in particular.
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The sheer size of the fire is affecting weather conditions in the general area it's burning.
As winds blew the smoke into nearby neighborhoods, KFD immediately started evacuating homes in the path of the plume -- saying they were worried about the changing winds and the proximity of the fire to those homes.
The particle density of that smoke was so thick this afternoon, it could be seen on radar.
The smoke is thickest at the site of the fire, which you can see in yellow on radar. The winds were carrying it up as far as Grainger and Union County into Maynardville, Corryton and Blaine during the afternoon.
Firefighters are also worried about rain. While rain might seem like it would help them battle the fire, it would actually be hazardous in this case.
The reason is the massive plume of black smoke. During the day -- the clear conditions created a high ceiling for the smoke, limiting the impact it had on air quality near the ground.
That ceiling will lower at night -- causing the smoke to sink and spread out in the atmosphere, potentially creating breathing hazards across a much larger area.
Knox County issued an air quality advisory as a heads up, saying people living around the area of the fire should take a few precautions just in case.
“To protect your health, it’s important to remember that if you can see or smell smoke, move away from the area,” said Knox County Air Quality Director Lynne Liddington. “If you cannot move away from the smoke, shut your doors and windows and turn off your air conditioning units. If you are driving through the smoke, roll up your windows and turn your air conditioning to recirculate, so you are not drawing the smoke into the vehicle.”