[Press Release] : 2nd Alarm Fire Damages Equipment at Gates Rubber

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Battalion Chief Steven Sapp, 573-499-7035 - Duty PIO Pager


2nd Alarm Fire Damages Equipment at Gates Rubber

Plant expected to resume operations as early as Tuesday 

COLUMBIA, MO (Date) - Columbia Fire Fighters responded to a report of a
commercial structure fire at Gates Rubber, 3015 Lemone Industrial Drive
at 11:00 am on Monday, October 1, 2007. The fire was reported by a plant
member who advised there was a fire in a "Batch Mixer" located on the
northeast corner of the plant. 

The first arriving unit, Quint 7, reported smoke showing from a two
story portion of the building on the northeast corner. The initial
dispatch sent 17 fire personnel on two Quints, one Snozzle, a ladder
truck, a heavy rescue squad, and two staff vehicles along with a medic
unit. 

The Columbia Fire Department and Gates Rubber have worked on fire
safety related issues in the past and Columbia fire fighters are
familiar with the materials and processes which take place inside the
plant. Because of this training, the first arriving units requested a
second alarm for equipment and staff at 11:07 am. The second alarm
assignment consisted of two additional Quints, Tower 5, the Foam Truck,
the Air Truck, and additional staff vehicles. The total number of fire
personnel on the scene numbered 43 during the height of the fire
fighting operations. 

Fire fighters determined that the fire was in the Batch Mixer on line 4
on the mezzanine level, the second floor, and the third floor. The
materials, when burning, produce a thick black oily smoke and the
product when mixed with water coats floors and stair and makes them very
slick; like wet ice. 

Fire fighters worked for over an hour and twenty minutes to extinguish
the fire and bring the incident under control. 

The process the Batch Mixer performs can be described by this analogy -


Raw materials (rubber) in powdered form is fed into a hopper and mixed
with liquid chemicals to form a dough like rubber material. The material
is then "kneaded" on a line of conveyer belts to process and cool the
material. The final material is shaped like a long wide ribbon and then
processed for shipping. The material produces heat during the mixing
process. Somewhere in the process, the material became hot enough to
burn on its own. 

In addition, a secondary fire was discovered in the air handling units
above the hopper. These air handlers are designed to recapture any of
the raw powder material for re-use and to prevent it from leaving the
building and becoming an air pollutant. This secondary fire was also
extinguished around 12:30 PM. 

Fire investigators have already begun their investigation to try and
determine where in the equipment the fire began and what caused the
fire. At this time, the fire remains under investigation and no dollar
damage estimates are available. 

As of 2:30 PM, normal shipping and receiving operations in the building
were able to resume. Plant managers believe that a second line may be in
operation Tuesday and that normal plant operations may resume while line
four is repaired. 

-30-


	

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