EMR Recycling investing $6.7 million into Camden waterfront after massive junkyard fire
Nearly two months after a massive four-alarm fire broke out at the EMR Metal Recycling facility in Camden, New Jersey, the company has committed to investing millions of dollars back into the community.
"Let's be clear, EMR is being held accountable," Camden Mayor Victor Carstarphen said.
Carstarphen detailed the new agreement between the city and EMR after the inferno raged out of control, sending toxins into the air. The mayor says EMR will now invest $6.7 million into the community, $4.5 million will be committed this year and $450,000 will be paid annually over the next five years.
"EMR will reimburse the city for losses fighting the fire, they will invest $3 million back into the waterfront south neighborhood," Carstarphen said.
The fire broke out on Friday, Feb. 21, around 5 p.m. at the EMR scrap metal plant on the 1500 block of South 6th Street in South Camden, and burned for more than six hours before crews from nearly 20 departments brought the blaze under control. Smoke from the fire could be seen for miles in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Two days later, EMR and Camden County confirmed that the fire was caused by a lithium-ion battery, which can't be recycled at the plant. However, in the fire investigation report released Thursday, the fire marshal ruled the cause of the fire undetermined.
EMR says it will now reduce its footprint in the city by nine acres, limit materials and increase inspections at the site. It will also install an aerial fire suppression system that includes heat detection cameras to identify potential hot spots and develop a text notification system for residents.
"They're saying these things now because this has become a pattern and they look bad," Jordan Mean, who lives near the facility, said.
Homes in the area were filled with smoke as the fire burned, and about 100 people chose to evacuate voluntarily. Residents in the area told CBS News Philadelphia they were especially frustrated because this wasn't the first time a fire had broken out at EMR.
According to the county, the February fire was the sixth at the facility since 2016, and the largest.
New Jersey Assemblyman Bill Moen called it a wake-up call. He says that in New Jersey, there is no framework for enforcing regulations in these industries, and he has since introduced a series of bills calling for more regulation.
"If you pollute and if you put communities at risk, you don't get taxpayer support, we're not going to underwrite those deeds," Moen said.
The city called this agreement a step forward, but some residents we talked with say it's too little, too late.
"I'm relocating, I'm relocating because of this fire, because of the reaction and the way that they moved after this fire," Aliyia Jones, who also lives near the plant, said.
The city said Thursday that $4.5 million of the $6.7 million will be committed in 2025, with an additional $450,000 paid out annually over the next five years. As part of the agreement, EMR will earmark funds to improve its fire suppression system at the Camden plant.
CBS News Philadelphia reached out to EMR for comment on the announcement but did not hear back. The city says the agreement will be put in writing within 45 days.
