Over 30 vehicles and 90 emergency personnel responded to a fire following an explosion at the Universal Galvanizing plant in the Wright City industrial park last Tuesday, Jan. 21.
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Over 30 vehicles and 90 emergency personnel responded to a fire following an explosion at the Universal Galvanizing plant in the Wright City industrial park last Tuesday, Jan. 21. Wright City Fire Protection District Chief Ron MacKnight said crews were able to combat the blaze and turned over the investigation to the Missouri Department of Public Safety’s Division of Fire Safety.
MacKnight wanted to thank all of the other agencies including fire departments from Lincoln and St. Charles counties for the coordination in responding to the emergency and lauded their efforts as no one was seriously injured or killed by the fire.
One firefighter from a neighboring agency sustained minor injuries while moving a hose to extinguish the flames.
Mike O’Connell, a spokesperson for the Division of Fire Safety, said the state fire marshal's investigation was underway and they suspected the cause of the explosion was a natural gas leak.
He elaborated saying there was nothing suspicious about the explosion or the fire and at this time the agency believes it was accidental.
Jim Sharp, director of the Warren County Emergency Management Agency, attended the Wright City Board of Aldermen meeting on Jan. 23 to discuss the emergency response.
Sharp wanted to dispel any concerns as there was a brief, half-mile evacuation order surrounding the fire due to the burning of sulphuric acid at the plant.
He had clarified during communications on the day of the fire that the order was a precaution and air monitoring did not indicate there was any danger to the public outside of the building.
There were only a select few residences within the half-mile radius north of Interstate 70 and Sharp said they were not in danger as their distance from the fire paired with the winds over the interstate would have protected them from any danger.
He continued saying if they were in danger, the order would have been to shelter in place, as opposed to venturing outdoors and potentially exposing themselves.
MacKnight said the fire was one of the “larger incidents” the district has had to deal with in recent memory and was glad they were able to get everyone out of the building safely and put out the fire without any major injuries.