Grays Harbor Fire District 2 firefighters responded to a call on Sunday morning about a fire in the garbage transfer station between Central Park and Montesano.
The initial call was for heavy smoke, possibly coming from a building near the dump, said District 2 Fire Chief John McNutt.
“It looks like the initial tone-out was thick black smoke coming from the blue building at the dump. It was called in by the National Guard at their armory there,” McNutt said in an interview. “First crew arrived on scene and they said they saw what looked like three trailers on fire.”
A fire had begun in the trailers used to move the trash to other facilities, McNutt said. Firefighters immediately called for mutual aid from Montesano and Aberdeen.
“The trailers were parked in a line of trailers. We tried to contain to where it had grown to,” McNutt said. “Once we were able to get it knocked down with LeMay’s assistance, we were able to pull the good trucks away.”
Firefighters were able to isolate and knock down the fire, McNutt said, but the cause is undetermined.
“There’s so much trash, it’s an undetermined cause,” McNutt said. “It had burned through two trailers. The metal on two trailers was burned through.”
Batteries or chemicals thrown in the trash are just two of the myriad possible causes for the fire, McNutt said.
“Be very cautious about what you’re throwing in the trash,” McNutt said. “When you pull up to the dump and they ask if you have any of these items, be very truthful. It could lead to bigger issues.”
While it’s the first time since his time as chief that such a fire as occurred, McNutt said there was a similar incident at another garbage facility more than decade ago.
“Be very cautious nowadays in what you’re tossing away,” McNutt said. “What if this caught fire in that large landfill? There’s going to be a lot more issues extinguishing that.”
Contact Senior Reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757-621-1197 or michael.lockett@thedailyworld.com.
Firefighters work to extinguish a trash fire early Sunday morning at the garbage transfer station between Central Park and Montesano. (GHFD2)
