Fire at Tyson plant extinguished

Garden City officials say a fire at the Tyson Fresh Meats plant in Holcomb is out.

Firefighters were able to get the fire under control around 9:30 a.m.. Crews will remain on scene throughout the afternoon to keep an eye out for any flare-ups.

Tyson Fresh Meats, Inc. says they will be opening their doors Saturday from 2 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. for employees to retrieve their items, such as keys and wallets.

Tyson staff is asking for, employees only, to come to the plant as to not congest the area. All employees should monitor Tyson’s social media site for further updates.

Officials with Tyson have released the following statement regarding Friday's fire:

"We safely evacuated workers about 8:30 p.m. Friday night from our beef plant near Holcomb due to a fire that started in the box shop. We have had no reports of injuries. The plant will be down indefinitely until we can assess the damage. We will soon be notifying our team members about informational meetings."

Garden City officials say a fire at the Tyson processing plant in Holcomb is still active. Crews remain on the scene, and the fire has been contained to the area where it began.

Officials aren't sure exactly the scope of the damage, but part of the roof has collapsed.

Around 75 employees were bussed to Holcomb Elementary School overnight. All of them had dispersed from the school as of around 1 a.m. Saturday morning. The American Red Cross and Salvation Army were on hand to help out.

Officials also say, while they appreciate the outpouring of support for firefighters and emergency responders at the scene, they'd like people to coordinate donations through Finney County Emergency Management (620-272-3747).

Authorities say a 911 call came in at around 8:35 p.m. from someone who said there was a fire on the west side of the building where the process begins.

Additional units were called in to assist.

Around 1,200 employees were on the scene at the time of the fire. All of them were evacuated and there are no reports of any injuries.

The American Red Cross was also called in to help those displaced by the fire.

Crews are asking everyone to stay clear of the area.