‘Could burn for days’: Around 150 firefighters battle large fire at Roxbury recycling center

ROXBURY, Mass — Around 150 Boston firefighters battled a raging fire in Roxbury Sunday morning.

The eight-alarm fire began in Resource Recovery, a construction recycling center on Gerard Street around 8:30 a.m., the Boston Fire Department posted on social media.

The Boston Fire Department shared video of smoke billowing from the transfer station.

No one was inside the building at the time of the fire but Boston Fire Commissioner Paul Burke shared that even the air was hazardous.

“We don’t know what’s in that material, there could be lithium battery, there could be anything,” said Burke. “You have wood products, you have asbestos, you have wallboard. They have all these things they separate and then send to other facilities to recycle it.”

At approximately 8:30 heavy smoke from a large trash transfer station at 65 Gerard st. Roxbury . This is now at 5 alarms. pic.twitter.com/VdwBqAaBy3
— Boston Fire Dept. (@BostonFire) March 16, 2025

“They opened the door and there was heavy fire inside,” said Boston Fire Commissioner Paul Burke. “The debris got going pretty good.”

All firefighters were ordered out of the building, forcing crews to attempt to douse the flames from outside.

“These piles are so deep and dense they can burn for days,” Burke said. I can’t get firefighters in there to move the piles of debris. They’d have to try to do it by hand and I can’t risk their lives doing something like that just to save a building that’s empty and that can be replaced easily. The hazards are unlimited.”

“Resource is one of our best companies, one of our biggest,” said Sue Sullivan of the Newmarket Business Improvement District. “They do tons of recycling. They’re a great company. They’ve been here for about ten years, fifteen years. This looks like a major setback. This is devastating for this company. It’s devastating, and it’s going to be a big clean-up. But I’m gad it’s not worse than it was and I’m glad that nobody was inside.”

The Boston Public Health Commission asked Roxbury residents to close their windows and doors.

“Our teams are monitoring air quality,” the health commission posted on social media. “If your building has an HVAC system, please turn it off until the smoke is gone.”

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