Mentor Firefighters Squelch Fire at Rubber Manufacturer

Mentor firefighters doused a fire Tuesday at the manufacturer Clark Rubber & Plastics on East Avenue.

They first received a call about heavy black smoke coming from the building about 4:45 p.m.

One of Clark's machines malfunctioned and caused a fire, Mentor Fire Battalion Chief Joseph Busher said.

Clark employees tried to douse the flames by themselves at first. But when they could not, they called firefighters and evacuated the building, Busher said.

The machine had a salt tank that could not get water on it, so firefighters used dry chemicals to squelch the fire, Busher said.

Firefighters were able to get the blaze under control within 15 minutes. Nobody was physically hurt by the fire.

It is not yet known how much damage the fire caused, because it's unknown if the machine that caused it is irreparably damaged, Busher said.

If the machine can still function, then fire damaged only the building's ducts.