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ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - An incident at a Rockdale County chemical facility early Sunday morning has prompted orders for many area residents to evacuate and others to shelter in place.

A shelter-in-place order has been given to the entirety of Rockdale County.

Around 5:30 a.m., a sprinkler at the BioLab plant on Old Covington Highway in Conyers malfunctioned and sprayed water on a chemical, causing a reaction that created a large, hazardous plume, which then began drifting to the northeast, Rockdale County Fire Chief Marian McDaniel said at a press briefing shortly after 10 a.m.

LATEST UPDATES: Chemical fire in Rockdale County | Shelter in place order, road closures and more

The malfunction also caused a small fire on the BioLab roof, which was contained, McDaniel said. During a press briefing around 5:30 p.m., McDaniel said the roof collapsed due to the fire.

The fire reignited around noon, and a huge plume of smoke is billowing from the plant, prompting an evacuation order for anyone between Sigman Road and I-20, according to county officials. The fire was extinguished around 3:30 p.m., according to McDaniel.

McDaniel said the plume of smoke could be visible for several days.

County officials said the order affected around 17,000 people.

Anyone in the evacuation zone needs to leave the area, officials said. Anyone outside the zone is asked to stay away. Anyone directly north of the evacuation zone is asked to shelter in place.

County officials blocked off Interstate 20 in both directions between Salem Road and Turner Hill Road due to the heavy smoke. The Georgia Department of Transportation reopened I-20 in both directions around 8 a.m. Monday.

The Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency has issued a shelter-in-place order on behalf of the Rockdale County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) for residents in the north half of the county, above Sigman Road. Those residents should remain indoors with the windows and doors closed, and should turn off their air conditioners.

County officials said Sunday afternoon that those who don’t leave the evacuation zone need to shelter in place. They said people south of I-20 should be safe.

Officials said they’ve requested assistance from other agencies beside GSP, many of which are now deployed across the state for the response to Hurricane Helene.

Newton County Schools said schools and offices would be closed “out of an abundance of caution.” The Rockdale County government and district attorney’s office will also be closed Monday. Georgia Piedmont Technical College’s Newton and Rockdale campuses will also be closed “until further notice,” according to the school. Rockdale County schools are currently on fall break.

Evacuation sites have been set up at the following locations.

Old Cousins/Wolverine Gym, located at 8134 Geiger Street in Covington

Scout Camp at 218 Scout Road in Covington

General Ray Davis Middle School at 3375 E Fairview Road SW in Stockbridge

DeKalb County has also opened the Lucious Sanders Recreation Center at 2484 Bruce Street in Lithonia to those affected. According to DeKalb County, DeKalb County Emergency Management has provided 200 cots.

Officials had earlier set up a shelter at the JP Carr Gym at 90 Hardin Street SW in Conyers, but a new location was needed because that gym is in the evacuation zone.

Officials said residents who have questions about the ongoing situation should call the Rockdale County EMA’s hotline at 770-278-8300.

The county also called on all churches to cancel services today, for churches already in session to disperse immediately, and for attendees to not travel through the affected areas.

The fire at the plant reignited as officials were working to remove the water-reactive chemical from BioLab to stop any further reaction, which McDaniel said requires heavy equipment. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is conducting air monitoring to determine what the chemical is.

County officials said employees were at the facility at the time of the early morning incident, but no injuries have been reported.

Officials said there’s currently no timeframe on ending the shelter-in-place order. Officials do not currently have an estimate on the number of people evacuated.

The sheriff’s office said before the morning press briefing that people “within a certain radius” of the facility were being evacuated and several roads in the area were being closed.

At the time, the sheriff’s office asked people in the area who weren’t evacuating to “remain indoors and keep windows closed to minimize exposure to any potential hazards.”

Before the fire reignited at BioLab, officials said the following roads were closed:

Old Covington Highway at 2nd Avenue

Old Covington Highway at Rockdale Industrial Boulevard

Sigman Road at Rockbridge Road

Sigman Road at General Arts Road

Blacklawn Road at Veterans Drive

Plunkett Road at Lester Road

Rockdale Industrial Boulevard at Lester Road

Lester Road east of Farmer Road

General Arts Road at Farmer Road

Green Street from Needmore Street to West Avenue

Dogwood Drive from Blacklawn Roan to West Avenue

Sigman Road at Irwin Bridge Road is closed to traffic traveling toward I-20

Southbound traffic on Hi-Roc Road between Irwin Bridge and Hwy 138

Hwy 138 to I-20 from Turner Hill Road to Salem Road

“Please avoid the area and follow detour signs,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement shortly after the incident. “Emergency services are responding, and safety measures are in place to protect the public.”

BioLab is described on its website as a “swimming pool and spa water care division of KIK Consumer Products, based in Lawrenceville, Georgia.”

In a statement sent to Atlanta News First, KIK Consumer Products said: “We are actively investigating an incident at our BioLab facility in Conyers, Georgia. Our employees are accounted for with no injuries reported. Our team is on the scene, working with first responders and local authorities to assess and contain the situation. As always, the safety of our community remains our top priority.”

McDaniel said this is the third such incident of this magnitude since she joined the county seven years ago. She said the last such incident was in 2021.

A fire broke out at the same location in 2004, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

A similar incident reportedly happened at the facility in 2020. According to the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, the “thermal decomposition” of a product containing chlorine happened there on Sept. 14, 2020. No injuries were reported in the incident, but a stretch of I-20 was temporarily closed due to smoke from the decomposition.

This is a developing story. Check back with Atlanta News First for updates.