Winds of 50 to 55 mph have prevented firefighters from digging into 10 large piles of mulch that have been burning since about 9:30 a.m. north of Fort Lupton, authorities said this afternoon.
Battalion Chief Mike Reasoner of the Frederick-Firestone Fire Protection District said firefighters from four departments, including his own, will use heavy equipment to dig into the mulch to extinguish the fires at Renewable Fiber Inc. on U.S. 85 near Weld County Road 18.
Because of the high winds and the fear that the fire would spread, firefighters hosed down large semi-trailers at the facility, said Reasoner. He said winds are expected to diminish later this evening.
The departments expect to be at the scene until at Wednesday morning.
Also fighting the fire are crews from Fort Lupton, Platteville and Hudson.
The fire sent large columns of smoke into the air and caused Union Pacific to close its rail line between Denver and Cheyenne until further notice, said Reasoner. The line runs parallel to U.S. 85.
Renewable Fiber describes itself as a supplier of animal bedding, arena chips, bagged shavings and bulk shavings.
Margie Martinez, spokeswoman for the Weld County Sheriff’s Department, said the primary operation of the Renewable Fiber facility is to grind wood into mulch.
Reasoner said the cause of the fire has not been determined. He said that a mulch pile could spontaneously combust because of the heat generated within it.
Susan Ditson, administrative manager of the facility, said that the company doesn’t know what caused the fire. She said the primary concern this afternoon is to get the fire out.
Ditson said none of the company’s employees were injured.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
