Fire damages industrial machinery in north Columbia

No one is injured after a fire started inside a manufacturing plant in north Columbia, according to officials.

Shortly after 9:00 a.m., firefighters responded to a call from Engineered Plastic Components, Inc., at 4000 Waco Rd.

A molding machine with a heating unit caught on fire and had created a large amount of smoke inside the building, officials said.

One employee was inside the building when the fires started.

Crews had the fire under control in about ten minutes, and were on scene for about two hours total clearing smoke and carbon monoxide out of the building, Lisa Todd with the Columbia Fire Department said.

“There was a lot of smoke in the structure, so we always stay and ventilate the structure so they’re using different heating units, HVAC units to pull the air out and they’re also using their PPV fans, or positive pressure ventilation fans, to help force air out of the structure,” Todd said.

According to officials, there is no damage estimate at this time. The fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.