Sunlight starts small fire at ruins of Waukegan factory

Some of the debris from the explosion that destroyed a Waukegan manufacturing facility on May 3 caught fire again briefly Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.

A driver passing by the site where the AB Specialty Silicones factory once stood noticed a small section of debris was on fire and called 9-1-1 at around 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, according to Waukegan Fire Marshal Steven Lenzi.

Lenzi said the debris was still hot after the massive explosion 11 days ago and must have rekindled in the sun. He said firefighters were aware the debris in that area might rekindle.

"It was a very small incident," Lenzi said.

Lenzi said the fire was extinguished within about 10 minutes.