JENNINGS, Mo. — Crews are currently responding to a massive fire at the site of a former bowling ball manufacturing facility in north St. Louis County.
The fire broke out sometime before 3 a.m. Thursday at the abandoned Visionary Bowling Products building at 8709 Xograph Ave. in Jennings. The manufacturer operated there from 1999 to 2019. The City of Jennings took possession of the property in 2019 due to unpaid taxes.
As of about 6 a.m., the fire was still burning on the inside of the building, and part of the roof collapsed. No firefighters were inside the building at the time of the collapse, and they continue to use ladder trucks to fight the flames from above.
The building was the site of a significant fire in 2021 that burned for over 12 hours, led to nearby evacuations and required a major cleanup effort from federal and state agencies.
In October, prosecutors filed criminal charges against the former owners for violating federal hazardous waste laws under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. Prosecutors said numerous containers of various chemicals and industrial materials were abandoned at the facility.
At the scene of Thursday's fire, North County Fire & Rescue Chief Keith Goldstein told 5 On Your Side he is calling on the city to do something about the problem property, which has been known for having homeless people in and out of it.
Firefighters were called to the same vacant warehouse on Sunday for a small fire, Goldstein said.
This is a breaking news story. 5 On Your Side will update it as more information becomes available.