A section of the Pactiv Inc. facility in Temple was evacuated Tuesday afternoon after a fire broke out.

Temple Fire & Rescue reports that crews were dispatched to the Pactiv plant at 3000 Pegasus Dr. at 3:05 PM, where they saw heavy smoke coming from an exhaust tower. Investigators discovered that the fire was contained to a piece of equipment involved in the production process' exhaust system.

Employees in the immediate area were evacuated. When we arrived at the scene, smoke was no longer visible and security teams were helping direct employee traffic away from the area.

We were initially alerted to the fire by concerned listeners on social media and via our app who believed there may have been an explosion. According to firefighters, that was not the case, and no injuries had been reported as of 5:00 PM Tuesday.

Fire hoses were being run along the side of Pegasus Drive as fire crews continued to work the scene, so if you have to drive through the area, please be looking out for those hoses and avoid them with your vehicle. Also be on the lookout for emergency personnel and vehicles.

Overall, 22 emergency responders and 9 fire apparatus responded to the call, according to Temple Fire & Rescue.

Photos provided by the fire department show smoke issuing from an exhaust tower. (See images below.)

Investigators continued their work to determine the cause of the fire late Tuesday afternoon. We'll provide an update to this story as more information becomes available.

Temple Fire & Rescue Photo
Temple Fire & Rescue Photo
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Temple Fire & Rescue Photo
Temple Fire & Rescue Photo
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