A fire at a Tip Top Poultry plant in Rockmart, Georgia, prompted the company to shut down operations on March 3, company President and CEO Brad Respass said.
Rockmart firefighters were called to the scene of a reported structure fire around 11 a.m., and found a panel truck engulfed in flames and catching a portion of the building’s exterior on fire, Northwest Georgia News reported.
Rockmart Fire Chief Todd Queen said the fire was put out in short order, but an area of the loading dock was on fire and the truck was destroyed. The fire apparently started when subcontractors cutting concrete hit a piece of metal framing with a saw blade, causing sparks to fly into an open gas can and ignite.
One of the subcontractors was injured in the fire. He declined to be transported to a hospital, but was treated at the scene.
Respass said that since the loading docks are vital to the plant’s operations, the poultry plant’s staff was sent home for the day. He added that he expected operations to resume on March 4.
Headquartered in Marietta, Georgia, Tip Top Poultry is a family-owned and operated company, which produces a variety of cooked and raw poultry products, according to the company’s website.
