SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. — Firefighters had their hands full with a difficult and dangerous fire inside a seed silo in Spokane Valley overnight.
Spokane Valley firefighters were called to Spokane Seed on East Alki Avenue just after midnight on Friday for reports of a smoldering fire inside a multi-story storage silo.
The fire created a major risk for firefighters with dust that was extremely flammable and had the potential to explode.
Firefighters found the fire burning in several locations. The fire had started at an auger unit that moved material from the ground level to the top of the silo. This means, that not only was there fire at the bottom of the auger, but the equipment had delivered burning material to several spots at the top of the silo.
The silo was about half full, with about 60,000 bushels at risk.
“The major hazard was the dust created from moving the material as the dust is extremely flammable and has potential to explode based on the overall volume,” Spokane Valley Fire said in a news release.
Firefighters were able to access the top of the silo thanks to ladder crews from Spokane Valley and the City of Spokane. The aerial ladders on their trucks were able to extend to reach the decking attached to the silo.
After two hours, crews were able to transfer the unaffected material to another silo. All the while, fire crews stood by with hoses ready in case dust or anything else ignited.
Spokane Valley Fire did not say specifically what caused the fire but included a warning in its news release that “only approved warming fires are allowed in Spokane Valley.”