No chances taken with fire

INCIDENT controller Jason Karauti (in red vest) marshals his troops during Thursday’s emergency. 143061AD

By Dean Taylor

A potentially explosive fire in a disused milk powder pipe at Fonterra’s Te Awamutu site triggered a full scale alert on Thursday afternoon.

The incident occurred in an area of the factory undergoing modifications. Incident controller, Te Awamutu senior firefighter Jason Karauti, says milk powder in the pipe caught fire. The pipe was still connected to the main hopper.

Mr Karauti says in certain circumstances dry milk powder is highly volatile, so firefighters were taking no chances. Reinforcements were called from Otorohanga, Cambridge and Hamilton, as well as Hamilton’s Mobile Command Centre and the aerial appliance as the fire was on the third floor. Mr Karauti says the reinforcements were precautionary.

TWO of eight appliances at the Fonterra callout. 143061BD

Firefighters broke the pipe and forced water through from both ends to extinguish the fire. A team also had to enter a room to put out lagging which had also caught fire.

Fonterra management and the senior firefighters from the professional Hamilton brigade conveyed their appreciation to all participants for the manner in which the emergency was handled. Mr Karauti says there was a good turnout and a good result.

In an unrelated incident a forklift at the Fonterra work site caught fire as the brigades were packing up. It was quickly brought under control.