Delaware Fire Marshal: Steel Plant Fire Accidental

The Delaware State Fire Marshal’s Office say a fire in the EVRAZ Claymont Steel plant in Claymont was accidental.

Firefighters were called to the plant Monday evening for a report of a fire and a trapped worker in a crane. Using ropes, firefighters were able to free the man and he was treated at an area hospital and released.

Investigators with the fire marshal’s office found that when carbon brick insulation come away from the wall in the electric arc furnace, molten steel burned through the wall liner. The fire marshal’s office says the molten steel ignited nearby combustible materials and hydraulic fluids, resulting in heavy damage to the unit. Damage to the unit is estimated at $500,000.