Pacific Coast Seafoods plant in Warrenton on fire. (Photo: YouTube)
Pacific Seafood plant suffers devastating fire
UNITED STATES
Thursday, June 06, 2013, 00:30 (GMT + 9)
A two-alarm fire broke out in Pacific Coast Seafoods plant in Warrenton, Oregon on Tuesday. Fortunately, the building was evacuated as black smoke filled the facility and noone was hurt.
There were no injuries even though 80 of the 130 workers were present, but firefighters said ammonia fumes engulfed the building as they fought the fire for hours. They said they were closely monitoring the large tanks of anhydrous ammonia used for refrigeration at the plant, but did not see any signs of leakage, KGW reports.
The fire started mid-morning, and firefighters from from six different agencies, including the US Coast Guard, responded and asked for more resources to help with a second alarm. Their focus was to prevent the fire from spreading to adjacent buildings, but the front wall of the plant collapsed in the early afternoon despite firefighters’ best efforts.
How the fire started remains unclear, KATU.com reports.
"Our Warrenton facility has suffered a devastating fire. First and foremost, we are grateful that no one has been hurt. We are also grateful for the first responders in Clatsop County who fought the fire and managed the situation,” stated Pacific Seafood CEO Frank Dulcich.
This plant processes all the city’s salmon eggs, and given that salmon season begins this month, it’s a tough blow for Warrenton.
"2013 marks our 30th year of operation in Clatsop County, and we plan to be there for many years to come," Dulcich said. "In the immediate term, we will utilize our other facilities in the region and the kind offers of our many friends to keep our Warrenton team-members and fishermen working and our customers served."
Pacific Seafood employs 2,500 people at 37 facilities throughout the US, with processing plants up and down along the Pacific Coast and distribution facilities spread across seven states.
"We will announce the details of our actions in the next few days," Dulcich added"We will also assess the damage to our facility and seek answers to the cause of the fire.
By Natalia Real
[email protected]
www.seafood.media
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