Businesses evacuated after fire in South St. Paul

Fire from a distance
A thick cloud of smoke from a fire at a South St. Paul chemical plant was clearly visible from downtown St. Paul Wednesday afternoon.
Photo by Patrick Maun, MaunMedia.com

(AP) - A fire at a chemical manufacturer in South St. Paul has closed two entrance and exit ramps off of Interstate 494.

MnDOT spokesman Kent Barnard says the entrance and exit ramps at Hardman Ave. and Concord St. remain closed this afternoon.

The building on fire houses Epoxical. The St. Paul Fire Department has a chemical assessment team on the site and another on the way to monitor air quality. A fire official says he didn't know of anyone injured in the fire.

Some businesses in the area were evacuated. South St. Paul schools have cancelled all outside activities, and several schools south of the fire, in Cottage Grove and St. Paul Park, were placed in lockdown for a brief period of time.

(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)