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241 N. Grant Street
PO Box 1108 Canby, OR 97013 Phone:
503.266.6831 |
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| Fire crews battle fuel blaze |
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| Fire in rural Canby causes major damage to operation; no one injured |
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 | | Submitted Photo | | Melted plastic containers used at a biodiesel fuel manufacturing operation in rural Canby were melted as nearly 500 gallons were ignited Saturday. |
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By Stephen St. Amand
Clackamas County’s lone biodiesel manufacturing operation sustained heavy damage in a large fuel fire in rural Canby Saturday.
Firefighters from four companies were called to action after several biodiesel tanks erupted in flames at 3:45 p.m. at Sunbreak Biofuels in the 9800 block of South Heinz Road west of Dryland Road.
The operation is owned by Jeff Bryant, who converts and sells fuel at a barn on the property.
Canby Fire officials believe the fire started in an office and seeped outside through an open window.
The fire melted a 275-gallon plastic fuel storage tank, igniting the biodiesel. It then spread to another 275-gallon tank.
Canby Fire Marshal Troy Buzalsky said high winds then spread flames to the support beams inside the manufacturing area.
Canby Fire arrived at 3:55 p.m. to an involved fire that threatened another barn 30 feet to the south.
Crews quickly determined they were not battling a typical barn fire.
“We kept sweeping the fire down, and it kept flaring right back,” he said. “The fire was burning with tremendous intensity, more so than would normally be encounter in a typical structure fire.
“When we arrived it looked like a fuel refinery fire,” Codino said. “Once we found out that we were battling biodiesel, all the black smoke and intense heat we were encountering made sense.”
Firefighters were concerned about several vats in the barn containing about 1,000 gallons of biodiesel fuel.
However, because biodiesel vapors ignite at significantly higher temperatures than gasoline, neither tank caught fire.
“We also found out that we didn’t have to worry about environmental damage because the fuel is 100-percent biodegradable,” Buzalsky said.
Firefighters from Canby, Monitor, and Aurora brought the fire under control in 45 minutes, with Molalla Fire Department on standby.
Officials do not believe the fire was a result of the fuel manufacturing and are concentrating their investigation on the electrical system inside the office.
Despite the blaze, Buzalsky said he was impressed with this first experience with a biodiesel fuel fire. “If this were gasoline, it would have been much worse,” he said. “From a damage and environmental standpoint, this could have been a whole lot worse.” |
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