Fire breaks out at Portsmouth recycling plant

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) - Fire broke out at a recycling center on Fredrick Boulevard not far from the Norfolk Naval Shipyard Saturday night.

Battalion Chief Jim Hoffler with the Portsmouth Fire Department said an automatic fire alarm at the Recycling & Disposal Solutions plant notified city 911 dispatchers of a fire at the plant at 3325 Fredrick Blvd. Crews arrived around 7:50 p.m. to find smoke coming from an interior office.

Once they gained access to the interior of the plant, crews had the fire under control in 10 to 15 minutes, Hoffler said.

The building contained a large amount of cardboard that the company planned to recycle. Hoffler said the building's sprinkler system helped the fire from spreading to areas that contained the cardboard.

Police blocked traffic on Fredrick Boulevard for more than an hour because firefighters needed to drag a hose across the street.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.