UPDATE: Spontaneous Combustion Caused Massive Fire, Officials Say

Investigators said a spontaneous combustion caused a massive fire Monday night at the Newell Recycling plant.

The blaze is one of more than 30 in the past decade at the plant, which is located on the 6800 block of Market Avenue in East-Central El Paso.

Fire officials said that more than $100,000 have been spent responding to fires at the Newell plant, which recycles plants.

But when asked why the plant is allowed to continue to operate despite all those dangerous blazes, officials said there isn’t much that can be done to keep the plant from operating — for now.

A cloud of thick smoke and flames hovered over the Newell recycling plant after bursting into flames Monday night, a scene that has become all too familiar scene for the East-Central neighborhood.

“Currently they’re zoned and they’re allowed to do it in their zone, ” El Paso Fire Marshal Calvin Shanks said, adding that the plant has all the proper permits.

The plant is zoned for manufacturing despite being surrounded by Western Refining and a residential neighborhood, which is a cause for concern.

“The zoning that they were given many years ago, it wouldn’t meet today,” Shanks said.

Investigators said leftover recyclable material, referred to as “fluff,” caught fire. Monday’s fire was ruled an accident.

Twenty fire crews and about $4,000 in taxpayer money was required to put the Monday’s fire.

The plant won’t be fined.

“Under the current code provisions, we don’t have a lot of teeth to enforce to enforce certain parameters,” said Shanks.

Even though Shanks agrees that there’s been a delayed reaction to changing the rules, he was quick to point out that a new stricter city ordinance is in the works, designed for various recycling businesses like the Newell plant.

“It will help limit pile heights,” Shanks said about the proposed ordinance. “It will force increased distance between piles and some other things, which will help minimize the fire and the fire spread potentials. “

City inspector Tom Maguire said his department only gets involved when there’s structural damage to a building, and Monday’s fire didn’t cause any.

Fire officials plan on presenting the new ordinance to the El Paso City Council by the end of September.