Explosions, Fire Destroy Bartow Manufacturing Plant, Close U.S. 411

Updated 3:40 p.m.

Highway 411 has been re-opened for normal traffic, but drivers should use caution in case equipment is still in the area, authorities said.

Updated 9 a.m.

Avoid Highway 411 in White because it's closed until further notice, sheriff's officials say. workers are setting up detours in the area to redirect traffic.

Updated 8 a.m.

Ten Mouldings Unlimited employees, who last night could have been working the third shift, were not there when explosions shook the city of White and flames began to engulf the manufacturing plant, threatening nearby structures, CBS Atlanta reports.

"It was shaking my whole house. It woke up my daughter and I was like, 'Get your clothes together,'" nearby resident Amanda Thompson told WSB-TV.

"It rattled the windows. It was really loud, like cannons going off," a man said of the explosions, according to the TV station.

Last week, the plant halted its third shift due to slow business, CBS reports. Mouldings Unlimited employs a total of 25.

Its historic old mill alongside Highway 411, built in 1962, has been destroyed in the blaze that could continue to burn through Monday, according to Fox 5 and CBS.

City of White officials have been concerned about water supply and water pressure, and Bartow Fire Chief Craig Millsap said wood products stored in the manufacturing facility are creating a challenge for suppression crews, Fox 5 reports.

Original Report

As a result of late-night explosions and a huge fire, U.S. Highway 411 outside Cartersville has been closed and could remain shut down until at least 8 a.m., Bartow County authorities said after 2 this morning.

The blaze at Mouldings Unlimited in White started about midnight, but was under control by 5 a.m., according to Fox 5 Atlanta and WSB Radio.

crews began battling the blaze, but requested assistance from Cartersville and Gordon and Cherokee county fire departments, Bartow County Scanner reports.

WSB Radio reported clean-up efforts early this morning blocked traffic on 411 from Stamp Creek Road north through the city of White.

Georgia Department of Transportation officials said 411—both the north and southbound lanes—was expected to re-open north of Cass-White Road by about 6 a.m. Check our live traffic map for updates.

Bartow authorities had said motorists should use Old Tennessee Highway to drive into the city limits of White, but GA Highway 20 could serve as a detour of the area.

Mouldings Unlimited, a family-owned-and-operated manufacturer, is one of the largest and most diversified moulding facilities in the southeast, according to the company's website. It produces hundreds of different hardwood and softwood moldings for a variety of industries in its 157,000-square-foot plant in White, which also contained a retail store and warehouse.

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