APEX, North Carolina (CNN) -- Half of Apex, North Carolina's, 32,000 residents have been advised to evacuate Friday after explosions and fire at a hazardous waste plant released a cloud of noxious gases over the town.
"There are pesticides, oxides, chlorine gases, there are all grades of contaminated material in this fire and in this smoke," Apex town manager Bruce Radford said. "(People) are putting themselves in very grave danger by being near or around this smoke. If you see smoke, get away from it."
A hazardous materials team from nearby Raleigh was waiting until daybreak to assess the damage.
Officials said they didn't know what sparked the fire, but The Associated Press quoted Mayor Keith Weatherly who said flames jumped the plant site and appeared to have burned four petroleum tanks belonging to another company. That likely accounted for the explosions, Weatherly said.
A yellow haze lingered over downtown and there was a faint smell of chlorine in the air, The Associated Press reported. Police lined up along the main street that runs through the town's business district, blocking both ends of the road, according to AP.
"People are going to want to come in and sight-see at this fire scene," Radford told AP. "They will either get terribly sick or they will be arrested. No questions asked."
Practically the entire eastern part of the town of Apex, located about 10 miles southwest of Raleigh, had been evacuated by early Friday, Radford said. Apex has a population of roughly 32,000 people and officials are asking about half the population to leave their homes as a precaution.
Nursing home patients treated
No deaths have been reported, but hospital officials said at least 106 residents from a nearby nursing home were admitted in addition to numerous people complaining of severe respiratory distress.
The entire downtown area is covered in thick black smoke, and Radford said he is concerned about the citizens who have ventured down near the fire for a closer look. Residents as far as 2 miles away could see the plume or smell the chemicals, officials told AP.
Residents have been asked to evacuate from at least six neighborhoods while others have been told to remain in their homes.
"We haven't been outside because they told us not to go outside," said Apex resident Willette Teasley. "There is a chlorine cloud from what I understand and when I stand at the bathroom window I see an orange tint over the trees."
Teasley said she suspects the orange color is from the fire since chlorine clouds are usually green.
Authorities are calling this the "biggest emergency we've ever had to deal with," Teasley said.
"We're just going to play it by ear," she said about whether her family would evacuate or not.
Meanwhile, all area hotels were completely booked up, according to Radford, and at least 200 residents had gathered at a local elementary school that was transformed into an emergency shelter. The shelter manager said Red Cross officials were en route with food, water and sleeping cots.
Massive evacuations were called shortly after a fire erupted at EQ Industrial Services, a facility that, according to its Web site, processes hazardous and non-hazardous waste.
Radford said the facility is in an industrial area but a residential area is nearby. He cautioned residents to close all windows, turn off all air conditioning and be aware if they have "tenderness of the mouth, gagging and nausea, which are typical signs of poisoning."
Although flames from the fire reached 150 feet at one point, officials are letting it burn to completion without intervention for fear of toxic runoff and because the chemicals pose a threat to firefighters.
"Water would flood the area with toxic chemicals," Radford said. "It just needs to burn up."
However, fire departments throughout Wake County were on the scene and others were on standby.
Radford declared a state of emergency for the town and county and said the business district, town hall and all schools in Apex will be closed Friday.
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Associated Press contributed to this report.
