Atlantic Coast Fibers fire requires major response

An early February fire at a 100,000-square-foot paper and plastics recycling plant in Passaic, New Jersey, has been described as an “11-alarm fire” and has been battled by trucks from more than 20 fire departments.

The blaze has caused major damage to the flagship facility of Atlantic Coast Fibers LLC, a company with a long-time presence and deep roots in the northern New Jersey paper recycling industry.

Several hours after the fire sent flames high into the sky and brought about the massive firefighter response, an online report from New York-based WABC-TV quotes fire officials as saying “it may take days” until the fire is totally extinguished. Firefighters were attempting to snuff it out before a large winter storm was predicted to hit the Garden State.

The report also indicates fire crews were using water from the nearby Passaic River to bring to bear enough water to douse the fire. WABC also describes the Atlantic Coast Fibers plant as being in a predominantly industrial area, with few nearby residents.

In addition to its Passaic facility, Atlantic Coast Fibers has plants in Lakewood, Neptune and Tinton Falls, New Jersey.

The early February 2021 fire coincides with the two-year anniversary of a fire at the Soundview Paper Co./Marcal Paper mill in nearby Elmwood, New Jersey, which completely destroyed that recycled-content tissue making complex, curtailing Marcal’s production throughout most of 2019.