General Motors halted production at six of its plants last week after a fire at Magna International interrupted the companies' supply of interior parts. The conflagration also halted production at the AutoAlliance International Ford-Mazda joint-venture plant in Flat Rock, Michigan, and Automotive News says that Mustang production there won't resume until Friday, March 11. AN does not give a timeframe for when the Mazda6, also produced at AutoAlliance, will head back into production.
According to reports, the fire started on Wednesday and took nearly a day to put out, damaging around 40 percent of the 187,000-square-foot Magna Atrium plant in Michigan. The Atrium plant builds door panels, instrument clusters and interior trim pieces for GM, Chrysler, Ford, Mazda and Nissan.
Thankfully, the fire didn't injure any workers, but Magna officials are still trying to determine the extent of the physical damage. No word yet on what the monetary damages will be from the fire, but according to The Detroit News, about half the plant is already back up and running, and the Detroit Free Press indicates that GM will resume full production at its plants today.