Officials yesterday began investigating the cause of a massive chemical fire that consumed the chemical factory Suministros Industriales de Costa Rica in Alajuela, northwest of San José, Tuesday night.

This resin-producing factory burst into blames at about 9 p.m., according to the daily La Nación. As firefighters struggled to get it under control, about 50 residents nearby were evacuated to temporary shelters set by the National Emergency Commission. No deaths have been reported in the incident.

The National Insurance Institute (INS) yesterday began the task of getting to the cause of the fire, according to a statement from INS. Investigators believe it could be faulty electrical wiring near the area where the chemicals are stored.

Firefighters' Corp Director Héctor Chaves lamented the environmental damage the accident caused. Firefighters used 1 million liters of water to put out the flames, a task which took about five hours. Because the factory has no waste-management system to separate contaminated fluids, this water mixed with chemicals as it flowed into nearby rivers, which feed into the ocean, the statement said.

Chaves called for better regulation of chemical factories, a topic that took the national spotlight late last year, when a chemical fire broke out at the Químicos Holanda plant at the Caribbean port of Moín (TT, Dec. 15, 2006).

He also pointed to a lack of fire hydrants that made the task of the 150 firefighters who came to tackle the flames even more difficult as they were forced to connect hoses to hydrants five kilometers away. He called on the Legislative Assembly to pass a law being studied by the Municipal Affairs commission that spells out improvements to be made to the country's fire hydrants.

-Tico Times