Silmet building in flames again in early hours of Wednesday

A fire broke out again in a building of the Molycorp Silmet rare earth metals producer in Sillamae, northeastern Estonia just a couple of hours after the previous fire was put out in the early hours of Wednesday, but rescuers were able to extinguish it quickly.

The first alert of a major fire in the Silmet factory came shortly before 4 p.m. Tuesday. When rescuers arrived they found that plastic was burning in the five-story industrial building and that 135 tons of chemicals was stored in it.

As a result of the blaze, a part of the roof and two upper floors of the building collapsed and some chemical containers broke. Residents of the town were urged to take cover indoors and close windows and doors to escape toxic fumes.

During the extinguishing operation six rescuers needed medical help. Four of them returned to work after treatment and two were sent home for home therapy. No other injuries have been reported.

The fire was extinguished by 2:16 a.m. but a few minutes after 4 a.m. it was reported that the building was on fire again. Rescuers were this time able to quickly put out the flames and the fire was declared extinguished at 4:29.

Experts are at work to determine the cause of the fire.