Humble plastics facility fire sparks environmental concerns: 'It can damage the wildlife'

HUMBLE, Texas (KTRK) -- In the aftermath of a large industrial fire at a plastics facility, there are now environmental concerns.

Fire officials in Humble estimate tens of thousands of tiny plastic beads were released, with many floating into storm sewer drains.

"That's what they use to make the plastic bags," Humble Chief Fire Marshal James Nykaza said.

The beads, he said, are used to make plastic grocery bags, one of the primary products made at the facility.

Crews began the clean-up on these beads once the air quality was determined to be safe, but it's unknown how many beads traveled into storm drains where they could end up in the San Jacinto River.

"It can damage the wildlife. You know the fish eat them, the birds eat them, it can harm them and make them sick- make them pass away," Nykaza said.

He added that remediation crews are working to try to clean up the beads, which are about the size of a grain of rice.

He said the fire was spotted around 1 a.m. by a Humble police officer who was on patrol. It took another 12 hours to contain the blaze, which destroyed the facility off Treble Road near Wilson, in the heart of Humble.

The facility operates 24/7, he says. Six employees were inside at the time, but they made it out safely.

Sitting just across the street from KSBJ, the contemporary Christian music station, businesses nearby were surprised to see the damage.

"I don't think all of us quite realized what was going on behind the scenes. We knew there was some light industrial over there, but we didn't know exactly what they did that it could have this kind of experience or a fire that would burn it to the ground," Joe Paulo, president & CEO of KSBJ 89.3FM, said.

Paulo said they are working to reach out and assist any employees of the facility who have likely lost their jobs.

An arson team with the Humble Fire Marshal's Office has been assigned to investigate the cause, but because this facility is not structurally sound yet, they haven't been able to start that investigation.

"As it stands now, the building is really unsafe to be in," Nykaza said.

He said the business has been around since the 1990s and was currently in compliance with fire codes.

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