Coal Fire Hits South Dakota Water Treatment Facility

Firefighters were battling a coal fire Monday night at a WEB Water treatment facility near Glenham.

The fire was reported about 3 in the afternoon and was still burning at 9 p.m., said Todd Salfrank, battalion chief with Aberdeen Fire and Rescue. He said the Aberdeen department's all-hazards team was called to help put out the fire.

Nobody had been hurt as a result of the fire, which was contained within a coal silo, Salfrank said.

The fine coal in the silo self-ignited and was still burning within the silo Monday night, he said. Such coal fires can be difficult to handle because coal dust within the silo or gases released by the fire can explode, he said. A coal fire explosion at Sunset Hutterite Colony in Marshall County killed two volunteer firefighters last year. But there had not been an explosion in Glenham Monday night.

Firefighters were venting gases caused by the fire out the top of the silo, Salfrank said. The state called Aberdeen firefighters in to help with the fire because of the threat of an explosion, he said.

Pouring water on coal fires like the one in Glenham isn't the way to put them out, Salfrank said. Instead, he said, a combination of a specialized foam and water should be pumped into the core of the fire. Foam was being transported from Sioux Falls to Glenham Monday night, he said. He said that most likely, a rod would be used to pierce the silo so the foam/water combination could be injected into the heart of the fire.

The fire was south and east of Glenham on South Dakota Highway 1804 near New Evarts Resort. The Selby volunteer fire department also responded to the call.

WEB Water delivers treated Missouri River water to towns, businesses and residents in northeast South Dakota.

Copyright 2012 - American News, Aberdeen, S.D.

McClatchy-Tribune News Service