CHS FARMERS ALLIANCE REBUILDING WAREHOUSE AFTER FIRE THAT DESTROYED BUILDING AND HERBICIDE INVENTORY IN MITCHELL, SOUTH DAKOTA. 25,000 GALLONS OF CHEMICALS SPILLED FROM CONTAINERS DURING FIRE.

FEBRUARY 19, 2015

MITCHELL, SOUTH DAKOTA

Mitchell's CHS Farmers Alliance plans to start rebuilding its chemical storage warehouse in the next couple of weeks.

The former warehouse burned in an early-morning November fire that blanketed the town in a putrid smell. CHS General Manager Jim Morken said Thursday the estimated losses from the fire will total more than $2 million.

He explained the warehouse will be built on the same site as the previous building. The same foundation will be used.

"We'll be using the same design for this building, but it will be 4 feet longer and 4 feet wider, so the poles to support the building can be outside the existing concrete," Morken said.

When the building burned, the containers inside melted. The chemicals -- mostly crop herbicide -- leaked onto the concrete pad and were held in by a 6-inch high berm designed to hold in the chemicals from leaking out.

"We were very glad that berm worked the way it was designed to," Morken said.

Morken said there was about 25,000 gallons of chemicals that spilled from containers during the fire.

Mitchell Fire Marshal Marius Laursen complimented CHS on the design of the building.

"The building did its job," he said. "The containment system worked well, so liquid wouldn't run out or into the ground or into the drinking water system. CHS did a great job designing that building."

The chemicals spilled have been cleaned up, Morken said. At the time of the fire, officials agreed to let the building burn. They felt using too much water would overflow the berm and cause chemicals to run out.

He said the building loss was about $250,000. The estimated cost of inventory lost is around $2 million. The hazardous material cleanup costs are still being determined, he added.

The good news is insurance will cover the majority of the costs, but the company is still working out those details, he said.

CHS is still working to get all the damaged material cleaned up and hauled away. What is left is secured under tarps at the site, he said.

When the new building is constructed, Morken said workers will pour extra concrete around the perimeter of existing foundation to further secure the building.

Morken said the smell that came from the fire was from the plastic containers, which were stored in the warehouse.

"Just about everything in there was in some type of plastic container," Morken said. "When everything fell on top, it would catch the air and something would smoulder."

He said the herbicide chemicals were not burning in the fire, nor were there any explosions.

Laursen and his investigators worked with CHS investigators at the scene of the fire.

"Because of the sheer amount of all the chemical runoff and hazardous waste that was in there, it would not allow for an absolute determination on the cause," Laursen said.

Although the liquid was entirely contained within the berm, it was 6 to 7 inches deep and "made for a very dangerous scene to work in."

He described the bottom part of the runoff as sludge and said it was mostly made up of herbicide, but also contained pesticide and fertilizer, along with other debris from the fire.

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NO CAUSE YET FOR FIRE AT MITCHELL GRAIN ELEVATOR

NOVEMBER 20, 2014

MITCHELL, SD

Authorities say they will need to remove chemicals and other debris from a grain elevator complex building in Mitchell before they can start investigating the cause of a fire that destroyed the structure.
The Wednesday fire occurred in a CHS Farmers Alliance building that housed farm chemicals and fertilizer. No one was hurt, and authorities say there was no immediate danger to the public. A Sioux Falls company was called in to monitor air quality.
Company General Manager Jim Morken said officials believe all of the chemicals were contained within the burned-out structure.
Morken said that the company had just completed construction of the building last summer. He says the fire is a setback, but crunch time for farm chemicals won't be until spring.

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MITCHELL, SD, FIREFIGHTERS BATTLE BLAZE AT CHS FARMERS ALLIANCE

NOVEMBER 19, 2014

MITCHELL, SOUTH DAKOTA

Around 3 a.m. Wednesday, a fire destroyed a fertilizer and chemical building at CHS Farmers Alliance in Mitchell, S.D., and blanketed much of the town with the choking smell of smoke.

The Mitchell Fire Department responded to the structure fire at about 3 a.m. on Elevator Road in western Mitchell. Firefighters and law enforcement found a building billowing with smoke and flames. The structure is owned by CHS Farmers Alliance and is just south of the main elevator area.

Jim Morken, general manager for CHS Farmers Alliance in Mitchell, says the facility is used for storage of crop protection and other agronomic products, typically herbicides, insecticides and pesticides.

He says the building was badly damaged in the fire, but a cost estimate was not yet known.

Mitchell Assistant Fire Chief Paul Morris says nobody was injured in the fire, and crews closely monitored the site throughout the day and overnight.

Morris says the weather — with winds gusting to nearly 40 mph from the northwest — cooperated to help dissipate the smoke from the city.

“We don’t have any immediate risk,” he said Wednesday morning. “Fortunately, the wind is strong enough and is sort of lifting up the smoke away from the city, so it’s worked out pretty well.”

Despite the strong smell that remained after the fire, Morken also says there was no threat to community members.

“Because safety of our community, our employees and the environment are always our priority, we have engaged an environmental firm to monitor air in the surrounding area, but at this time we do not believe there is any risk to area residents,” he says. “We want people not to be overly concerned. We don’t feel there are any hazards.”

He adds that officials think all of the product was contained inside the structure, which is equipped with a dike, or berm, which Morken likened to a shallow bathtub. He says it’s meant to contain the product inside in case of emergency events — like a fire.

“It’s designed for exactly what it’s doing,” he says.

That’s partly what complicated fighting the fire, though, Morken says. Adding too much water would raise the product levels over the protective dike.

“Then you’ve got bigger problems,” he says.

In cooperation with the Mitchell Fire Division, Morken says CHS officials decided early during the incident to let the building burn, since it likely couldn’t be saved. It’s also why the site was still smoldering late Wednesday afternoon, Morken says.

“We want to make sure the people in town understand, the reason there is still smoke coming off the site is because we can’t use a lot of water on the site,” he says.

He referenced the smell, which he likened to a burnt plastic odor, and notes it would probably still linger with some of the residual smoke as the site burns itself out.

“We appreciate everybody’s patience,” Morken says.

Since the site smoldered throughout the day, Morris says they had not yet been able to start investigating the cause. Morris adds that even once the site cools, chemicals and other debris will need to be cleared before it’s safe for investigators to enter.

Bystanders noticed the fire and called it in. Morris says the fire was pretty well engulfed when firefighters arrived and firefighters fought in close proximity to the fire until part of the building’s roof was waving in the wind and later caved in.

“At that time, we decided we’d let the building burn itself out,” he says.

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Mitchell firefighters are on the scene of a fire at a building on Elevator Road in western Mitchell owned by CHS Farmers Alliance. 

The building, which is just south of the main elevator, stores herbicides, pesticides and other chemicals.  Authorities received the call just before 3:00 this morning. 

The Ethan and Mount Vernon fire departments are also on the scene.  Mitchell Assistant Fire Chief Paul Morris says they are letting the fire burn itself out. 

He says there is no danger to the public, but residents are being asked to stay away from the area this morning.  The public is also asked to avoid outdoor activities downwind of the fire until mid-morning as a precautionary measure, as toxic chemicals could be in the air –