"Upon making entry crews found a vat of oil on fire..."

The Aluminium Plant Safety Blog has posted numerous incidents involving flammable liquids in our industry. Here is another incident that emphasizes the hazard of flammable liquids in our plants.

A local Fire Department responded to a commercial structure fire one night during the week of March 15, 2020.

According to a news release from local Fire Deputy Chief, crews arrived at 9:43 p.m. to find smoke showing from a bay at (company name). The company produces aluminum castings for the aerospace and defense industries.

Workers inside the building reported the fire and had evacuated the building before firefighters arrived.

“Upon making entry crews found a vat of oil on fire. Fire was contained to the vat of oil,” the news release says.

A suppression system within the building dispersed carbon dioxide, which prevented the fire from spreading. Crews applied water and quickly extinguished the flames.

The cause of the fire is under investigation. The Fire Deputy Chief said damage is estimated at $10,000.

Nineteen firefighters from two fire departments responded with two ladder trucks, two fire engines, two paramedic rescues, one ambulance, and one Battalion Chief.

There are no injuries associated with this incident.

We are ecstatic no one was injured in this incident. The news media article does not state what type of oil was on fire. We will reach out to the company and ask. We will update this post when we find out further information.

We would hope that each reader will ask their maintenance department “do we have any flammable liquid in our plant(s)?” If the answer is yes. Is there an alternative? If they answer is no. Are the item(s) stored properly according to all pertinent regulations? Then ask, do we have to store the current volume, or can we reduce the volume?

Please comment.