MORRIS, Ill. (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Fire officials are considering using road salt or cement powder to try to smother a fire that’s been burning in a warehouse since Tuesday.
There’s up to 100 tons of volatile lithium batteries in the building and smoke from the fire forced a few thousand people out of their homes, at least until later Wednesday night.
Morris officials said they had no idea that there was a company operating in the 900 block of Benton Street. They thought the building was abandoned. They also said they didn’t know that as much as 200,000 pounds of large lithium batteries were being stored there.
“We’ve looked at all our records and cannot find a business license, so normally those people would report to us and let us know what is in the building, what they’re operating with," said Morris Mayor Chris Brown.
Fire Chief Tracey Steffes said the batteries that are stored inside the building "continue to detonate.”
Because they’re so volatile when wet, firefighters have not been able to use water or foam to extinguish the fire. Chief Steffes said he’s scouring the country for information on fighting fires involving large amounts of lithium.
He said he hopes to have a strategy figured out by this afternoon. That could include using road salt, Portland cement dry mix, or just letting the fire burn out on its own.
Chief Steffes said the owners of Superior Battery, which has been operating in the warehouse, have been cooperative with Morris officials.
Still, the chief said Superior Battery has never provided information to the fire department on the kinds of hazardous materials it deals with.
“We have a lot of chemical plants. We have a lot of heavy industry here. And them people, them companies report that to us. We get that yearly from them. We have not gotten nothing from this company," he said.
Police Chief Alicia Steffes said 3,000 Morris residents continue to be advised to stay away from the area and their homes. The evacuation order runs until 9 p.m. Wednesday. The police chief said it hasn’t been decided whether to extend the order.
Police Chief Steffes said that while the fire department will conduct an investigation into the cause of the fire, the main investigations will be done by federal and state agencies.
Corey Kupiec, 37, said he’s frustrated toxic materials were being stored within a block of his house and that the city had no idea the company existed.
“I have a girlfriend who is soon to be my fiancé. I’ve have a diabetic son, so my health concerns are already through the roof," he said.
Kupiec said he’s worried about ground contamination.
“A lot of us have gardens that we eat vegetables from within a couple of hundred yards of that facility. Do I stop eating my tomatoes?” he asked.
Kupiec said he’s an Army veteran with PTSD, and after police asked him to leave his house late Tuesday morning, he did. He said he and his girlfriend went to a Joliet hotel, but that they were put next to a room with a loud party, so they went to her place of business and slept on the floor.
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