Sioux Center, Iowa– Firefighters from three communities were called out to a fire call in Sioux Center on Thursday, June 30, 2016.
According to Sioux Center Fire Chief David Van Holland, about 6:15 AM, the Sioux Center and Hull Fire Departments and the Sioux Center Ambulance crew were called to the report of fire in the basement of the feed mill at the Farmers Coop Society’s feed mill at 288 Third Street Northwest in Sioux Center.
The chief says the fire department saw a considerable amount of smoke as they approached the scene.
No injuries were reported.
The Orange City Fire Department was also called for mutual aid. Chief Van Holland says they provided a Rapid Intervention Team or RIT. This type of rescue team is needed when firefighters may be at increased risk of being injured or trapped.
He says the fire was in the pelleting cooler under the feed pelleter. He says they scooped it empty and poured water on the smoldering pellets. He says it took lots of manual labor. He said there was lots of heat, and the weather was warm as well, making the work more strenuous.
Chief Van Holland reports that basically only the feed in the building was damaged.
He says the official cause is undetermined, but it could possibly have been due to a previous malfunction.
He says they used 600 to 700 gallons of water to fight the fire, and crews were on scene until 8:30 AM.
