A blaze at the Novelis aluminum plant threatens recovery efforts already underway from an earlier fire that disrupted the auto industry’s aluminum supply

By Greta Stuckey
syracuse.com

SCRIBA, N.Y. — Firefighters left the Novelis aluminum plant in Oswego County just before 6 p.m. Thursday, about nine hours after the fire was reported, a county spokesperson said.

Heavy smoke and fire were reported around 8:45 a.m. in the Scriba plant’s hot mill section and spread into the roll shop, according to dispatches from the Oswego County 911 Center.

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More than 80 firefighters from 20 departments battled the large five-alarm fire. Firefighters from Oswego and Onondaga counties were on scene, according to Terry Bennett , the emergency services program coordinator in Oswego County.

Firefighters left the plant at 5:50 p.m., according to Oswego County Fire Coordinator Shane Laws. The Novelis Fire Department will maintain a fire watch overnight, Bennett said.

In the morning, firefighters extended at least four ladder trucks high into the air to spray water on the roof.

Tanker trucks ferried water to and from the facility to supplement water on-site. Firefighters also connected a hose to a nearby property to bring in more water.

The fire was mostly knocked down by 12:20 p.m., Bennett said. Some crews were starting to depart the facility at 2:15 p.m. and Novelis said the fire was out around 4 p.m.

Everyone working at the plant was safely evacuated, Novelis said in a statement.

The company said in a 4 p.m. statement that it hasn’t been able to fully assess the fire damage at this time or investigate the cause of the fire.

The fire could deal a blow to efforts to get the plant running again after an earlier fire in September.

That fire damaged the roof and halted the plant’s ability to heat up aluminum ingots, the first step to make rolls of aluminum sheets.

Novelis says it is the world’s largest supplier of aluminum sheets to the automotive industry, with a global market share of about 50%.

The Sept. 16 fire severely disrupted the American auto industry supply chain. The loss of the plant’s aluminum sheets temporarily shut down auto plants in Tennessee and Michigan. Ford Motor Co. estimates the issues cost the company $1 billion.

Novelis officials had previously said they were hoping to bring the plant back online next month.

The company has touted that it was running a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week operation to repair the plant. Stadium lights were brought in so crews could work around the clock.

Novelis employs more than 1,100 people at the plant in Scriba, just east of Oswego. It is one of Oswego County’s largest employers.

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