Fire at Portland asphalt plant

Portland, Conn. (WTNH) - Fire investigators are looking into the cause of a blaze at an asphalt plant in Portland.

The fire started at Triram Connecticut on Brownstone Ave. around 7:50 a.m.

Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Dwayne Gardner said the fire was in a shed with a heater used to warm oil products used to make asphalt. That building houses 5 gallon and 55 gallon drums of product.

"We had a awful lot of hazards to deal with down in this particular area," Cheif Robert Shea, Portland Fire Department, said. "It's very hazardous. It's an emulsion which is liquid asphalt so it's very flammable."

The DEP did not see any evidence of oil in river, but as a precaution they deployed containment booms. The cause of the fire is not yet known.

"We're not sure what happened as far as whether the thermostat didn't shut off in that area or whatever and the drums caught fire," company manager David Fletcher said.

While the part of the building involved in the fire is not operational, the company said it will have its trucks out on the road delivering product Monday morning.

The company has hired an environmental contractor to clean up.

Back in February, the company agreed to pay $68,400 designed to prevent oil spills from reaching waterways. The Environmental Protection Agency said Triram illegally discharged approximately 1,000 gallons of oil into the Connecticut River in January, 2009.