A large fire broke out at Howard Industries in Laurel Monday afternoon, prompting several area fire departments to respond to the scene and employees to be evacuated.
“Massive fire happening right now at Howard Industries on Industrial Boulevard,” Jones County Fire Council PIO Jennifer Kempton said in a statement after the fire was first reported around 2:40 p.m. “Multiple city and county departments are on the scene fighting the fire. Please avoid the area if possible to allow first responders room to work. More information to come.”
All employees were safely evacuated, and no injuries have been reported.
Heavy smoke rose from a fire at Howard Industries in Laurel, Mississippi on Monday after a paint booth next to a tanker truck caught fire. All Howard Industries employees were evacuated. pic.twitter.com/Xx1SQtdjtk
— CBS News (@CBSNews) September 1, 2026
By 8 p.m. Monday, more than a dozen fire departments had worked to contain the blaze, which crews said may have started after a paint booth next to a tanker truck caught fire. An investigation into the fire remains ongoing.
Howard Industries is one of the largest private companies in Mississippi. The company manufactures electrical power equipment, computers, medical hardware, and lighting products that are distributed globally.