Cliff Buchan &
Jessica Foster
Staff WritersSRC Recycling in Wyoming was hit hard by a late afternoon fire Monday that was fought by volunteers from eight departments.
Wyoming Fire Chief Dennis Berry said the blaze started in a garbage truck that was inside the large building at 5385 260th St. Although firefighters thought the blaze had been contained early on, it spread quickly and resulted in significant damage to the building, vehicles and content, Berry said.
Berry said the initial call came in shortly after 4 p.m. Monday and mutual aid calls went out to the Forest Lake and Stacy-Lent departments. Firefighters from Hugo, Chisago City, North Branch, Lindstrom and Linwood were called and more than 80 firefighters were involved in the effort, Berry said.
Brian Rod, assistant fire chief in Wyoming, said, while the building appears to be a large pole building from the exterior, the inside is almost a maze with several cordoned off areas. The fire mainly hit the southwest corner of the building.
ìNothing was easy to get to, especially through the black smoke,î Rod said. ìIt was a very difficult fire to fight.î
Adding to the difficulty, there was only one fire hydrant in a somewhat close proximity to the building. Mutual aid was called in part to bring in tanker trucks. Two were set up outside of the building and a water brigade of sorts was set up, Rod said.
The Environmental Protection Agency was notified due to a large amount of oil in the building, which was kept from flames. The EPA did not arrive on scene.
The fire engulfed trucks, garbage, plastic bottles and other recycling items.
Rod estimated there were about 25 trucks in the building when the fire began. Firefighters and SRC employees were successful in removing about a half dozen of those trucks, Rod said.
Berry said one Wyoming firefighter injured a knee when he slipped on ice. He was taken to Fairview Lakes Regional Medical Center to be checked out, the chief said.
The state fire marshal officeís was notified of the blaze late Monday, Berry said.
Berry said the cause of the initial fire in the truck remained under investigation but officials believe it may have been electrical.
ìIt was a frustrating fire to fight,î Berry said. ìIt was hard to fight because of the different compartments.î
Business owner Cameron Strand could not be reached for comment prior to deadline on Tuesday. The company said on Tuesday that business was continuing as usual for the companyís trash pickup routes throughout the Forest Lake and Wyoming areas.
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