Arson is being investigated as the cause of a fire that destroyed the Lacour-Dalton plant early Monday morning.
dog food fire 2One person was taken into custody by Henryetta police and is being considered a person of interest in the fire. That individual was placed in the Henryetta city jail but has not been identified. He is going to be questioned about several business burglaries in town in recent days.
According to fire chief David Bullard, the blaze was reported around 5:30 a.m. By the time Henryetta fire crews arrived on the scene, the front part of the building was totally engulfed and flames were erupting through the roof.
He said the state fire marshal's office will be sending an investigator to go through the rubble.
Two people were employed by the company that produces dog food. Neither were at the building when the fire started.
Because of the proximity of the fire to the railroad tracks, two trains had to be halted for some four hours.
As the fire department was getting the blaze under control, traffic accidents called away some of the firemen. One of their crews was sent to a two-vehicle crash on the Lake Road at the north entrance to Nichols Park. That accident is still under investigation.
Within minutes of that call, bremen were also sent to an accident on Interstate 40 just west of town.traffic backup
A semi-trailer and another vehicle collided in the construction zone just east of the exit. That backed up traffic for several miles while the accident scene was being cleaned up. Much of the traffic had to be routed through town.