Update: Massive fire destroys recycling plant on Youngs Avenue in Calverton

Updated- 1:30 p.m. : Riverhead Fire Department First Assistant Chief Sean Brennan declared the fire at Crown Sanitation under control at 11:20 a.m., after more than nine hours of firefighting operations. Some of the nearly three dozen departments that responded on mutual aid to assist Riverhead have been dismissed from the scene and are returning to their own headquarters. Others, as well as Riverhead firefighters, have not yet been dismissed as mop-up operations continue at the site.

Multiple fire departments continue to battle a massive fire at Crown Recycling on Youngs Avenue in Calverton this morning.

The alarm came in at about 2 a.m. 

The main building on the site was “pretty much fully engulfed” in flames when Riverhead Fire Department firefighters arrived at the scene, Riverhead Fire Department Chief Piotr Kurzyna said in a phone interview at 7:40 this morning. The whole building was on fire, he said. The building is used for waste processing and contained “pretty much everything you can think of,” Kurzyna said.

“The building is gone,” he said. Fire within the building’s remains continues to burn.

The fire at 7:45 a.m. was about 80% contained, the chief said. It has not yet been declared under control.

Thirty to 35 departments, including EMS, responded on mutual aid, Kurzyna said. Several ladder trucks are at the scene along with multiple tanker trucks, which have been filling up at hydrants along Osborn Avenue to bring water to the site.

Crown Recycling specializes in recycling scrap metal, solid waste disposal, and demolition debris, including asbestos, according to its website. 

The facility is situated on a 16-acre site across the road from the capped town landfill. There are at least four structures on the property, including the massive main building, and other structures such as a fuel storage tank, according to radio reports.

The presence of asbestos at the site was “very much” a concern, the fire chief said. The State Department of Environmental Conservation was called to the scene for that reason, he said.

Nearby residents should keep their windows closed and try to stay indoors, the fire chief said.

Suffolk County’s Office of Emergency Management said it sent an alert to residents within four miles of the incident, via their Suffolk County emergency notifications system, which sends text messages to people who register for alerts. The alerts are sent by text message.

Riverhead Water District Superintendent Frank Mancini said this morning that water district customers in the area may see slight discoloration of their tap water. That’s a result of all the pumping, and is caused by high iron levels, Mancini said. The water is safe to use, though he said it would be helpful if residents in the area limited use while pumping by the fire departments continues.

The Suffolk County Police arson squad has been called to the scene to assist the Riverhead fire marshal and police detectives in an investigation.

Youngs Avenue was closed to traffic between Osborn Avenue and Old Orchard Road all morning. It was reopened at 1:30 p.m.

Correction: This story was amended to correct a misstatement regarding air monitoring by the State DEC at the site this morning. The DEC was not conducting monitoring an agency representative said at the scene this afternoon. For more information see follow-up story, forthcoming.