High winds fanned a blaze at an 18-acre mulch plant near Fort Lupton all day Tuesday, sending huge plumes of smoke into the sky and forcing Union Pacific Railroad to shut down train traffic running parallel to U.S. 85 between Denver and Cheyenne.
The fire was out Tuesday night, but crews from Fort Lupton, Platte ville, Frederick-Firestone and Hudson fire departments were expected to spend the night at the Renewable Fiber Inc. plant monitoring the situation.
Renewable Fiber is east of U.S. 85 and north of Weld County Road 18.
The fire started early Tuesday in four mulch mounds. Wind quickly spread the fire to six other piles, said Frederick- Firestone Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Mike Reasoner.
Firefighters’ hoses were also directed to prevent winds from spreading the fire to buildings on the north side of Fort Lupton.
They planned to use heavy equipment to dig into the mulch to put out the fires, Reasoner said.
He said the yard includes large warehouses where landscaping products are stored.
Renewable Fiber’s main business is grinding wood for mulch, but the company also makes animal bedding, arena chips, bagged shavings and bulk shavings.
A cause of the fire had not been determined, although Reasoner said that a mulch pile can spontaneously combust because of the heat generated within it.
Susan Ditson, Renewable Fiber’s administrative manager, said no employees were injured.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
