FRISCO, Texas — A chemical fire at a Frisco pool store led to city officials asking residents to shelter in place, but the fire was ultimately deemed non-hazardous to residents, officials said.
During a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Frisco Fire Marshal and Public Information Officer Kelly Kistner said they had a witness to the fire and that it looked like a chemical reaction on a palate of pool shock outside of the building started the fire
That fire then spread from the palate to a truck parked by the dock of the building, which then spread to the building itself. Kistner said there was no possibility this was arson, and that there was a witness who saw the fire start.
Early Wednesday morning, residents were asked to shelter in place after a pool supply business caught fire in an industrial park off the Dallas North Tollway. The request was lifted about an hour later.
The fire was first reported at 7:44 a.m. at Texas Pool Supply in the 10500 block of John W. Elliott Drive, near Eldorado Parkway and the Dallas North Tollway. The fire was called "out" by 9:28 a.m., according to a press release from Frisco Fire.
Kistner said 78 first responders were at the fire. There were 58 firefighters, 12 police officers and 8 public works employees. A few of the first responders were from Little Elm.
The fire department is now in the process of putting firefighters and trucks back in service within the city, Kistner said.
Ten first responders were taken to a hospital for inhalation-related injuries as a precaution, Kistner said — three firefighters and seven police officers. All of them are stable and under observation as of Wednesday afternoon.
Three chemicals – pool salt, chlorine and pool shock – were involved in the fire. Two of those chemicals are considered hazardous, Kistner said.
“Hazardous materials will complicate any response that we make especially a building fire like this,” Kistner said. “Luckily here in Frisco, we are blessed to have those hazardous materials specialists, those people that can handle these types of emergencies right alongside our firefighters.”
The building suffered extensive damage to its roof, but Kistener said they can't say whether it's a total loss at this point. There were sprinklers which activated inside the building which limited damage inside.
At 8:30 a.m., The city of Frisco asked residents in the area bordered by Research Road to the north, Page Street to the south, the railroad tracks to the east and the Dallas North Tollway to the west, to shelter in place. By 9:18 a.m. the shelter in place was lifted, the city said. The fire department issued the shelter-in-place as a precaution after people in the area said they smelled an odor, Kistner said.
The chemicals currently pose no threat to the public and the department is working to ensure the runoff does not reach the water system, Kistner said. The public is safe, he reiterated.
“There is no danger to anybody in town as a result of this fire,” Kistner said.
Video from a viewer captured while traveling down All Stars Avenue near the site of the fire shows heavy flames and smoke coming from a building.
The company, Texas Pool Supply, is new, Kistner said. The building was recently inspected by the Frisco Fire Department, Kistner added. The company was compliant and there was a routine follow-up scheduled for today, Kistner said.