By BRAD GASKINS / Staff Writer

WILSONVILLE – Unit 3 at Plant Gaston is tentatively scheduled to start back up this weekend, an Alabama Power spokesman said Wednesday.

Unit 3 and Unit 4 have been shut down since Oct. 22, when an early morning fire forced the temporary evacuation of Alabama Power employees at the facility.

The fire started about 5:45 a.m. in the turbine area of Unit 4, one of the smaller units at Gaston, spokesman Ike Pigott said. After help from neighboring municipal fire departments, the fire was under control and essentially out by 7 a.m. There were no injuries.

Unit 3 was shut down as a precaution, while Unit 4 will remain offline indefinitely as plant personnel determine what happened and make the required repairs, Pigott said.