Small fire at American Scrap Iron causes disruption of Charleston Highway Monday

Cayce, SC (Paul Kirby) – Another fire, this one small in comparison to past incidents, at American Scrap Iron disrupted traffic on Charleston Hwy. Monday at the height of the morning commute. Officials said this fire was out very quickly. The business, which is located at Memorial Drive and Charleston Highway, has had other fires in the past that were much larger and closed the highway, sometime for hours, while firefighters fought those blazes.

Although American Scrap Iron is in Lexington County and not the City of Cayce, Cayce DPS fire equipment and manpower were first to arrive on scene. This is because their station is much closer to the site than the current county fire station that covers that area. The Cayce firefighters did find a small fire in the yard, and by the time Cayce began setting up, Lexington County resources were arriving.

Cayce DPS confirmed via social media around 8:30 a.m. that they were slowing traffic in the event they needed to block Charleston Highway for the operation. The fire hydrant for that site is on the opposite side of the highway for the business. By 10:21 a.m., Cayce gave the all clear and announced that traffic was flowing again normally.

American Scrap Iron has had some huge fires in the past, several in the past 12 months. The company accepts all types of metals for recycling but scraps many junked cars daily. Some of the by-products of that recycling process are combustible. The powerful machinery used in the process can and does spark fire. In past instances, it has taken firefighters hours to put the infernos out.

One woman who lives close to the site said Monday morning that there must have been something that exploded on site during their processing. She said via social media that she heard a loud explosion that shook her home before the fire trucks arrived.