American Zinc Recycling plans to restart facility after fire

Pittsburgh-based American Zinc Recycling Corp. (AZR) has announced that it plans to repair and restart its zinc smelter in Mooresboro, North Carolina, “as soon as practicable,” according to a company news release. The facility, which removes and refines metals to make special high-grade zinc and continuous-galvanizing grade, caught fire on April 28. 

According to the news release, damage to the plant caused by the recent fire was largely limited to a discrete area of the plant and no injuries arose from the fire. 

“We look forward to repairing and restarting our Mooresboro plant, which had been fully constructed and was successfully producing zinc before the fire," says Rodrigo Daud, CEO of AZR. "The fire began from an ancillary unit that was adjacent to the cell house, and we will be redesigning this unit to minimize the possibility of future incidents. The response of the fire department and the other first responders, along with the safety focused, specific actions of our employees, prevented any injuries and enabled the fire to be contained."