Tons of fertilizer, pesticides burn in CT fire that prompts shelter-in-place order

Thousands of pounds of fertilizer and pesticides were burned during a fire at a nursery in Franklin early Monday that prompted a one-mile shelter-in-place order, state officials said.

The fire broke out in the early morning hours at The Plant Group, LLC., where multiple area fire departments responded to a report of a fire at a warehouse containing fertilizer and possibly pesticides, according to fire officials and a spokesperson for the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

The response included the Franklin, Lebanon, Mohegan and Bozrah Fire Departments as well as the DEEP Emergency Response Unit.

The blaze was mostly under control shortly after 10 a.m. with a few hot spots still in place, officials said.

According to a spokesperson for DEEP, about 10 tons of ammonium-based fertilizer and a full pallet of pesticide were consumed in the fire.

As a precaution, a shelter-in-place order was issued for residents within a mile of the fire, according to a DEEP spokesperson, who described the area as “rural.”

“DEEP has air and drone monitoring in place, and Kropp Environmental was contracted to assist with the cleanup,” said Will Healey, director of communications for DEEP. “Air monitoring showed low readings of carbon monoxide, which is normal when there is fire smoke.”

Healey said no other chemicals were detected.

“A berm was created to limit run-off from entering a nearby brook, and water sampling will be conducted,” Healey said.

Kropp — an environmental contracting and consulting firm based in Franklin — put a vac truck in place to remove contaminated water run-off from the site, Healey said.

Additional machinery was expected to possibly be brought in to excavate any impacted soil.

“The environmental impact appears to be minimal at this time,” Healey said.