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8 Alarms Update

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Heavy Response and Sub-Freezing Temperatures

THE 8-ALARM FIRE IN BURLINGTON, WISCONSIN, that eventually reached 13 alarms brought units from 92 fire departments (full run listing is HERE) to a food processing plant Wednesday night was successfully knocked down after 18 hours.  (See the Firegeezer report HERE.)  Firefighting efforts were severely hampered by the brutal cold temperatures which were in the teens throughout.

The fire threatened several liquid oxygen and ammonia tanks

FirefighterNation posted a recap of the operation which included rotating the fire crews every five hours through the night.  You can read FFN's updated REPORT HERE. 

 

Video by Larry Shapiro

The fire was in the MABAS mutual aid territory (northern Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Iowa) and the dedicated team of photographers from ChicagoAreaFire had a couple of representatives – Larry Shapiro and Tim Olk – who trekked up to the town to document the fire.  They tell us that the windchill factor while they were up there was minus-10 deg.

Read Larry Shapiro's first-hand report from the scene with a good summary of the fire hazard that was facing the crews HERE.

Larry's 45-image photo gallery (featuring lots of ice and Fold-a-Tanks) is HERE.

Firegeezer really digs tanker operations  (Larry Shapiro photo)

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Posted by on February 2, 2013 • Filed under: fire, Fires, Videos • Tagged: , , , ,

8 Alarms Bring 80 FD’s in Wisconsin

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A True Test of the Incident Command System

A MASSIVE FIRE IS UNDERWAY IN Burlington, Wisconsin, this morning at a food processing plant.  The fire began just after 6 pm Wednesday evening at the Echo Lake Farms Produce Company, a 70,000 sq. ft. plant that processes egg products, and has reportedly brought units from about 80 fire departments to the scene.

WISN-TV

The Chicago Tribune is telling us:

The fire broke out about 6:05 p.m., according to City Administrator Kevin Lahner.  "As of right now, we have departments from Racine, to Milwaukee and Waukesha and Kenosha counties, and some from Northern Illinois," Lahner said.

The factory processes egg products, Lahner said. There is some "ammonia present" but it’s not a concern at the moment, Lahner said, and a hazardous materials team from Racine is monitoring air quality around the site.

At 5:30 am Central, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal reported that the fire is still ongoing and that it appears the plant will be a total loss.  City officials have already met with Echo Lakes Farms officers and assured them that the city will assist in any way that they can to rebuild the plant which is one of the city's largest employers with 300 workers.

The building has been added onto several times over the years and the interior has been described as a "honeycomb," making it difficult for the firefighters to reach the various fires.

WISN-TV has some good video of the fire HERE.

UPDATE, Saturday am:  The fire eventually escalated to 13 alarms bringing units from 92 departments.  See our updated report that includes the run card, more video, and more details HERE.

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Posted by on January 31, 2013 • Filed under: fire, Fires • Tagged: , , ,