May 27-- Investigators have ruled out foul play and arson as two possible causes of a massive warehouse fire in Cobb County, police said today. But the cause of the blaze that burned for hours and shut down roadways has not yet been determined.
No one was injured Friday night when the Amrep Inc. warehouse in Marietta ignited, causing huge flames and billowing smoke that could be seen in neighboring counties. Several explosions were heard, prompting evacuations and road closures Friday night. Cobb County and Marietta firefighters battled the fire for several hours before it was extinguished around 4 a.m. Saturday, according to Officer David Baldwin with Marietta police.
The same warehouse has been the site of at least three previous explosions, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Saturday.
In February 1989, two people were injured, one of them critically, in an explosion at Amrep, a manufacturer of chemical products located on Industrial Park Drive, off U.S. 41.
In July 1997, two men working there were badly burned when fumes from a cleaning solvent ignited. Two years later in June 1999, a man suffered second-degree burns in a flash fire caused by rosin mixing with acetone that had been left at the bottom of a tank. In December 1999, The AJC reported that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration had fined Amrep $219,000 for a "recent" fire and issued "nine serious safety citations."
The latest fire at the facility remains under investigation, Baldwin said today. Amrep company officials are cooperating with the investigation, he said.
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