Major fire on an industrial site in Gard. Firefighters remain on alert: what we know

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More than 30 hours after their arrival in the sector, the Gard firefighters remain fully mobilized on a major fire which broke out in a large industrial zone, near Beaucaire.18 of them could remain there for another two days.

Prolonged presence

Requested by Actu.fr, Lieutenant-Colonel Christian Péréa takes stock of this fire.

“We are here, for a while longer. 18 colleagues spent the night there and will stay there all day today. It will be same for tomorrow », assures the officer, referring to the feuwhich broke out in a 31 meter high silo on the Heidelberg Materials France (formerly Calcia) industrial site, on the night of Monday November 4 to Tuesday November 5.

We don't know how long we'll be here, but we're sure of one thing. This is because the task promises to be difficult in the face of such a silo with a very slow burning fire. At a minimum, our teams will remain in the sector until Thursday, November 7 at the very end of the day.

To achieve their goals, firefighters benefit from the reinforcement of the company's specialized teams.

“We work with them. The fire started at one end of the silo. It did not completely burn. We proceed to of l'inertage the massive sending of carbon dioxide in the silo to gradually bring the temperature down,” explains the Gard firefighter.

50 degrees expected

Lowering the temperature is the leitmotif of the 18 firefighters still mobilized around the site. To achieve this, they 9 technical devices on site.

The temperature well exceeded 150°C when the fire started. It gradually comes down. Our work is bearing fruit. Our goal is for it to reach 50°C. We are still far from it. Last night, it fluctuated between 80°C and 90°C. Then we continue the cooling process.

Ground coal to recover

The work of the firefighters will stop once this fateful temperature of the 50°C will be reached and will continue to descend. And after?

“Our teams will be able to leave the premises. The company's technicians will wait for the expert to arrive who will determine the reasons for the fire. The Heidelberg teams will then be able to try to recover what remains ground coalpresent in the silo,” concludes the Gard firefighter.

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