DETROIT (WWJ) - GM’s Factory Zero is resuming production after a large fire shut the plant down on Tuesday.
Multiple crews from the Detroit Fire Department were dispatched Dec. 19 at approximately 3:39 p.m. to fight the fire at GM’s Factory Zero, located near East Grand Boulevard and Mount Elliott Street.
Firefighters remained on the scene of the 3-alarm fire for hours to ensure hotspots had been doused and the fire was extinguished.
WWJ’s Jeff Gilbert spoke to a spokesperson for GM, who said the fire was caused by a forklift accidentally puncturing a container of battery material.
The fire was in a loading dock area. Officials said bins of lithium ion batteries were on fire which caused heavy smoke throughout much of the factory.
Guidehouse Insides Analyst Sam Abuelsamid said the number of fires caused by batteries are low, but they are “very, very hard to extinguish.”
Two shifts were canceled at the plant while the fire was being extinguished, but Gilbert said production is returning to normal, and most of the employees have returned to work. Employees that work in the area where the fire occurred have not returned yet. They are expected to be called back once everything has been cleaned up.
There was no damage to the plant itself, officials said. No firefighters or employees were injured during the blaze.