Smoke from a fire at Midwest Recyclers near River Drive in Davenport was visible throughout the city. A firefighter told News 8 that it was coming from a large pile of salvage cars and recycling material.
The fire started Friday morning, August 27. Smoke was starting to get noticed around 10 a.m. The fire was initially reported at 9:45 a.m.
Bill Knapp works nearby and said he and his coworker saw the first flames.
"The other spotter and I - we were sitting over on the other side," Knapp said. "He saw some smoke. He turned around went and checked it out, saw the fire and called the fire department."
The Davenport Police Department said the fire was in the 500 block of Howell Street, and were urging people to avoid the area.
Neighboring business, Purina, self-evacuated out of precaution.
"We get some excitement around here, but nothing like that," Knapp said.
According to Fire Chief Mike Carlsten, the fire was mostly knocked down by 12:30 p.m. Crews were met with the challenge of limited water sources as they battled the blaze.
There were no reported injuries. Crews had to rotate several times due to the heat, which was in the 80s.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
The smoke plume could be seen across the city. The photo below near the intersection of Jersey Ridge Road and Kimberly Road, was about five miles northeast of the fire.
This thick smoke drew neighbors down to the recycling plant to see what was happening.
"We could see all the smoke from where we live," said Hannah Lawson and Addyson Eastman. "We're wondering what was on fire or whatever. I was going to the gas station so we just drove by and just tons of smoke. We could barely breathe."