Philadelphia Health department says air quality is safe after fire at linen warehouse
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- The cleanup effort continues in Philadelphia's Frankford neighborhood after a massive warehouse fire on Christmas Eve.
Firefighters spent hours battling the blaze at Arway Linen in the 4700 block of Duffield Street.
On Thursday, an excavator could be seen ripping down the rest of the facility, which launders about one million items a week.
The entire building will have to come down, and with it so many memories as employees work to move forward and keep the business moving.
It's been in the neighborhood since December 1985. Mark Kolsky has been there just as long.
READ MORE: 'It's devastating:' Christmas Eve fire torches longtime linen warehouse in Frankford
"I grew up in this building. It was horrible. I came here when I was 21. I'm 62. I lived in this neighborhood longer than any other neighborhood. It's a family-run business, it's horrible," he said.
Investigators are still searching for clues about what caused the fire.
No injuries were reported.
Concerned about the potential health impacts from all the smoke, the Philadelphia Department of Public Health sent out a warning for residents Wednesday to stay inside.
But after collecting air quality samples, city officials gave the all-clear Thursday, saying residents could return to normal routines.
"The fire caused no recorded rise in the amount of particulate matter, or PM 2.5, or other criteria pollutants at any of the City's monitors. Additionally, no toxic compounds were identified at the site of the fire at levels that would pose a threat to human health," the health department said in a statement.
