Man says explosion, fire at SPS Technologies in Abington shook his entire home: "It was ridiculous"
On a chilly Monday night in Montgomery County, Charles Brown heard an explosion that shook his entire home.
"It was ridiculous, it shook the house so bad," said Brown, who lives near SPS Technologies, which caught fire on Monday night and prompted an evacuation notice for residents nearby.
As of Tuesday, the fire in Abington Township is still burning and people who live in the 247 houses surrounding the factory were told to evacuate because of air quality concerns.
Brown was among the people living nearby who evacuated. He and his family are now at Cheltenham High School, where an evacuation shelter is located in the auditorium.
"I looked at the roof line of SPS and it was blazing," Brown said. "Montgomery County has an emergency alert system and it actually called my wife's phone and the house and told us we have an hour to leave."
Montgomery County asked people to self-evacuate if possible, but they sent school buses for those who need transportation to the high school. Emergency responders are going door to door to advise people to evacuate.
The Cheltenham, Jenkintown and Abington school districts will be closed on Wednesday due to the fire.
What we know about fire in Abington at SPS Technologies
The fire broke out at SPS Technologies on Highland Avenue around 9:30 p.m. on Monday.
Abington Township Police Chief Patrick Molloy said about 60 employees were inside the building when the fire started, but everyone was able to evacuate safely. No first responders were injured in the fire, either. Sixty-eight fire companies responded to the massive blaze.
After believing the fire was under control on Tuesday morning, Molloy said the fire re-intensified at around 11 a.m. and more black smoke was coming from the building.
Along with the evacuation notice, a shelter-in-place order issued on Monday night remains in effect for a one-mile radius near SPS Technologies.
SPS Technologies manufactures metal equipment for the aerospace industry and other sectors, including the military. A chemical process is involved in that manufacturing, Abington Fire Marshal Chris Platz said, and firefighters concentrated on keeping the flames away from those chemicals.
While no threats to air quality or water runoff in the area have been detected, hazmat and Department of Environmental Protection officials will continue to test air and water throughout the day.
Molloy said the fire didn't appear to be anything criminal but the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is on the scene investigating the fire.
Montgomery County officials are urging people who don't live near the fire to stay away from the scene.
The fire has impacted service on SEPTA's Regional Rail on the Lansdale/Doylestown, West Trenton and Warminster Regional Rail lines.
