Firefighters tackled a small fire in an industrial area of Elko Tuesday night, as a fire broke out in a gravel pit near the Canfor mill yard, according to the Regional District of East Kootenay.
“The fire was contained to the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure’s gravel pit; however, had the potential to be much more serious as the area it broke out in borders on Canfor’s mill yard, which contains a much larger fuel source,” said Michael Hockley, the Deputy Chief of the Elk Valley & South Country Rural Fire & Rescue Services. “Our firefighters did a great job of getting it under control and keeping it confined to the gravel pit. We also had tremendous cooperation from Canfor and Mainroads Contracting, and we would like to thank them for their efforts.”
The fire drew a response from 10 firefighters with the Elko and Baynes Lake fire departments, along with five pieces of apparatus, which arrived on scene at approximately 8:30 p.m. Personnel and equipment battled the flames till well into the early hours of Wednesday morning, while representatives from Mainroad East Kootenay Contracting and Canfor stayed at the site through the night to monitor any potential flare ups.
No injuries were reported from the blaze, which is believed to have started when a pile, that had been burned over the winter, re-ignited.
“Over the past few weeks, our crews have responded to several calls and we want to once again acknowledge them for their outstanding efforts last night,” said Hockley. “These men and women are paid-on-call volunteers and the service they provide in keeping our communities safe and supporting our residents is invaluable.”
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