Nov. 19--GRAND COULEE -- One worker was hospitalized and another treated for smoke inhalation Monday after a fire erupted at the pumping plant at Grand Coulee Dam.
Operator Daniel McCulloch, 54, was this morning in serious condition and in intensive care at Seattle's Harborview Medical Center. He has worked at the dam since 2008, Lynn Brougher, spokeswoman for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, said this morning. Another worker was treated and released from Coulee Medical Center, she said.
The fire began around 11:40 a.m. Monday inside the John W. Keys III Pump Generating Plant.
The plant is on the west bank of the Columbia River, just upriver of the dam. It pumps water into Banks Lake, a key storage reservoir for irrigation water fed via the Columbia Basin Project.
Six of the plant's 12 pumps are also capable of being reversed to generate electricity, Brougher said.
Officials suspect the fire occurred in one of the "switch gears" that, at the pull of a lever, can convert the units from the pumping to generating function, she said.
The fire filled the plant with smoke, forcing its evacuation. Fire crews responded and extinguished the blaze.
"There is a lot of smoke damage, as well as pieces of equipment that burned," Brougher said. "We have a lot of unanswered questions. Our concern is safety."
Investigators are awaiting the results of tests to ensure the plant doesn't contain toxic air or chemical residue, Brougher said.
If results come back clean, officials will enter the plant and begin cleanup and evaluation.
The incident is the third emergency this year involving fire and electrical damage in and around the dam.
In October, a jolt from some electrically charged water knocked some concrete facing off the dam's "left" powerhouse. In March, an electrical fault, combined with a breaker that failed to trip, caused a fire and explosion at the dam's "right" powerhouse.
No one was injured in either incident.
Three such incidents in a year is "higher than usual," Brougher said.
Reach Christine Pratt at 509-665-1173 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @CPrattWW.
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