The production,
storage, transportation, and processing of aluminum dross is a hazard that many
plants overlook. At any point during this cycle fire can result. Here is a reminder
of this hazard during transportation to a processor.
The cargo of a truck emits
smoke on the A8: delicate intervention for firefighters in Puget-sur-Argens
Thursday evening, the
firefighters intervened on the Canaver rest area on the A8, closed for the time
of the intervention, for a very technical operation which kept them awake until
the early morning.
Around 9:10 pm,
unexplained smoke emissions from the dumpster of a truck were reported to them.
The truck was actually
transporting 15 tonnes of aluminum waste which heated up after its dumpster
warmed up. The Sdis 83 firefighters took no risks and decided to establish a
safety perimeter of around one hundred meters around the truck.
The rest area therefore
had to be closed by the gendarmes.
A team specializing in
chemical risks
The intervention consisted
of transferring the cargo from the truck to two other "healthy"
tippers supplied by Escota using a backhoe loader (also supplied by Escota)
while spraying the aluminum with a specific product .
Given the technicality of
the intervention, a team specializing in chemical risks was mobilized, as well
as two fire-fighting vehicles and a water truck.
During the operations, the
firefighters took several samples to ensure that there was no environmental
risk.
At the end of the
intervention, the waste was recovered by a company specializing in its
treatment. No injuries are to be deplored and the rest area was able to reopen
around 6:30 am.
We are ecstatic that no
one was injured in this incident. In our opinion that occurred because of education.
Education of the trucker, firemen, etc. Without that education the firemen
would have dumped water onto the dross that ignited. Water should never be
placed upon dross that has combusted because the fear is an explosion could
result. We have reported on numerous incidents where a fire personnel were uneducated
and unaware of the hazards of dross fire and placed water on it. The resulting
explosions injured and even killed fire department personnel.
If your workplace produces
aluminium dross does your local fire department know the proper procedure for extinguishing
it?
Please comment.
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