The blaze that has been consuming an Elizabeth, NJ warehouse since Wednesday is now at eight alarm (up from 7 alarms yesterday) and authorities think it'll burn through Christmas. Elizabeth Deputy Fire Chief Lathey Wirkus said, "Pieces of it are definitely going to collapse. We’re definitely going to have some catastrophic collapses here."
The warehouse is the old Burry Biscuit factory, which had been subdivided into spaces for various businesses. According to the Star-Ledger, "The fire swallowed the center section of the largely vacant facility around 6 p.m. [Thursday]... Fire officials say flames from the eight-alarm blaze are so intense they will have to let more portions collapse before they can launch another attack." And late last night, the fire went 150 feet into another building, but firefighters were able to stop it.
More than 250 firefighters have been trying to tame the fire, which officials believe started when a car in an auto body shop caught fire in the sub-sub-basement. The mayor of Elizabeth thinks it might have been arson and even though officials say there are no air quality concerns, they have recommended schools and homes keep their windows closed.
