Carlstar sustains minor fire damage
Clinton firefighters and the city’s aerial ladder truck battle a fire Thursday night (Dec. 10) at The Carlstar Group’s Carlisle tire plant on J.D. Yarnell Industrial Parkway. (photo:Tyler Crabtree / Anderson County EMS )
No injuries resulted from the fire, which was reported at 9:51 p.m. at The Carlstar Group LLC plant, according to the company and the Clinton Fire Department.
“We started production back up on Friday,” said the official, who asked that her name not be used. “There was some damage to our mixer, but the rest of the plant was fine.”
She said the company, which makes specialty tires under the Carlisle brand, has about 380 employees at the facility, at 520 J.D. Yarnell Industrial Parkway.
Clinton Fire Chief Archie Brummitt said it took firefighters “about an hour and a half” to bring the fire under control, but that they were on the scene until about 4 a.m. Friday.
He said Monday that the cause of the fire was still undetermined.
“It started in a process machine in a lower level of the building, and we pretty much contained it to right there,” the chief said. “But it did get into the dust-collector system on top of the building.”
The Clinton Fire Department responded to the alarm with three engines and its aerial ladder track, which was used to extinguish the fire in the dust-collector system. About 15 firefighters responded to the call, Brummitt said.
Oak Ridge sent firefighters and trucks to stand by in Clinton while the fire was being fought, in case any calls came in during that time, Brummitt said, adding: “Luckily, we had no other calls, which was unusual.”
The Carlstar Group is based in Franklin, Tennessee. Its website says the Carlisle brand of specialty tires “provides a comprehensive product portfolio for lawn and garden, ATV/UTV, trailers/haulers, agriculture, construction, industrial, and tube/flap market segments.”