"fire suppression system worked as designed, fire contained...."

Dust collectors are a common piece of equipment in almost any type plant in our industry. Their proper maintenance and service is important to prevent dust/fine fires. The Aluminium Plant Safety Blog has a recent story reinforcing the importance of proper dust collector operation.

The Fond du Lac Fire Department was called out to Mercury Marine on Monday afternoon, November 10th after a dust collector system caught fire.

Fire officials say Plant 98 at Mercury Marine had to be evacuated after plant personnel reported a fire occurred in a dust collection system connected to the building.

The automatic fire sprinkler activated and the fire was extinguished.

“The fire suppression system worked as designed and kept the fire contained to the dust collector” Fond du Lac Fire Chief Peter O’Leary said.

The fire was contained to the dust collector and didn’t cause any structural damage. No one was injured. Employees returned to work shortly after fire crews cleared the building

The Aluminium Plant Safety Blog congratulates Mercury Marine for contacting the Fond du Lac Fire Department for assistance in putting this fire out. In addition Mercury Marine personnel were properly evacuated resulting in no injuries.

There is a lot of information on preventing aluminium dust/fine explosions and fires. 

The Aluminum Association (USA) has some great literature aptly titled: "Guidelines for Handling Aluminum Fines", which can be purchased here.

The DieCast Industry has a great Powerpoint presentation on preventing dust explosions and fires. It can be downloaded here (it will download immediately if clicked).

The Aluminium Times Magazine's safety column dealt with aluminium dust and fines. That column can be found here.

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