Overview
- A large pile of mostly tires and trash at Mammoth Metal Recycling on Kellogg Street ignited and burned across Monday, June 22, sending a plume of thick black smoke visible for miles and requiring hours of firefighting to contain.
- Houston Fire Department arson investigators are examining the cause and have not filed charges, while the company’s managing director publicly called the blaze accidental and said he returned to cooperate with officials.
- Local, state and federal agencies are monitoring air quality and water runoff and officials have urged residents and people with respiratory conditions to stay indoors or wear masks because tire smoke carries particulate matter, carbon monoxide and heavy metals.
- Public records show the site and tied businesses faced recent illegal-burning citations, delinquent-property tax lawsuits with a 2025 default judgment ordering sale, and federal PPP and loan-fraud indictments from 2023 that produced at least one guilty plea with sentencing pending.
- The fire raises immediate questions about enforcement, property oversight and cleanup obligations for neighbors who reported breathing irritation and health worries, and investigators’ findings will determine whether criminal charges, fines or a formal cleanup plan follow.