Thousands of people were told to stay home with their windows shut Monday after a fire at a Georgia industrial plant caused a chemical reaction that prompted around 17,000 people to evacuate Sunday and left potentially harmful chlorine lingering in the air.

A fire at a Georgia chemical plant has officials advising residents in and near Conyers to shelter in place, as people have reported the smell of chlorine in the air.

The fire ignited when a sprinkler head malfunctioned early Sunday morning at the BioLab plant about 25 miles southeast of downtown Atlanta.