Dozens of area firefighters battle Buzzi Unicem coal fire

Eight area fire departments responded to a three-alarm coal fire inside the Cape Girardeau Buzzi Unicem cement plant late Monday night and into Tuesday morning.

According to a Cape Girardeau Fire Department report, an employee discovered a fire near a pulverized-coal hopper in one of the upper sections of the main building at 2524 S. Sprigg St. at 11:33 p.m. Monday.

The initial dispatch of four engines and a ladder truck arrived to flames and smoke coming from an upper level that housed kilns of coal, the report stated.

Cape Girardeau fire marshal Brian Shaffer said the fire was caused by spontaneous combustion inside one of the kilns.

Shaffer said thick, black smoke inhibited firefighters’ visibility inside the building and prevented them from containing the fire early.

All Cape Girardeau firefighters were called to the scene, and fire engines from Gordonville, Millersville, Fruitland and East County were dispatched along with a ladder truck from the Sikeston Department of Public Safety.

Departments used ladder trucks to move hand tools, fans and a hose to the building’s upper level. Firefighters then began extinguishing the fire, Shaffer said.

The fire was declared under control at 1:22 a.m., according to the report.

Seven engines, three ladder trucks and a total of 50 firefighters were on the scene at the peak of the fire, the report stated.

Groups of two to five firefighters rotated in shifts of about 25 minutes, Shaffer said.

The Cape Girardeau County Firefighters Association air van assisted with refilling firefighters’ air tanks, according to the report, and the American Red Cross assisted with a rehabilitation station for firefighters.

According to Shaffer, crews spent nearly four hours clearing adjoining sections of the building and containing smaller, scattered fires.

No injuries were reported, and all fire personnel were released at 5:07 a.m. Tuesday.

Shaffer said Buzzi Unicem personnel still were assessing damage caused by the fire.

Officials at Buzzi Unicem did not respond to messages left at their communications office Tuesday morning. A woman who answered the phone said officials were busy working with their insurance company and could not comment.

About 180 people work at the Cape Girardeau Buzzi Unicem plant, according to a recent Facebook post by the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce. The plant is one of the company’s seven cement operations across the country.

bmatthews@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3652

Pertinent address:

2524 S. Sprigg St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.