A westside fire occupied city and county firefighters for most of the day Tuesday and forced the evacuation of as many as 100 people.
It was only a blaze in a barrel - but a barrel containing a potentially toxic chemical.The fire, which first started around 8:30 a.m. at the Westco Standard Distributing Company building, 2500 South and 850 West, was put out about noon. But the blaze restarted about 3:15 p.m. and was finally put out about 10 p.m.
The blaze also underscored the need for care when handling dangerous chemicals and the difficulty of fighting such a fire.
No one was injured and fire damage was limited to the barrel itself.
Salt Lake County Board of Health official Ted Diamant said an investigation will be conducted into the situation.
The chemical was aluminum phosphide and goes by the brand name Phostoxin. It is a highly toxic material used to fumigate for rodents. Fumigators put the chemical, which gives off a toxic gas, in closed buildings and don't re-enter the building for at least three days.
In order for the gradual chemical reaction to produce its deadly gas, the temperature in the building must be at least 68 degrees, Diamant said. The Westco building was not warm enough.
When workers at Westco arrived Tuesday morning after the long weekend, they noted that the chemical hadn't done its job and assumed it had lost its toxicity. So, they decided to throw it away.
When workers put the chemical in the barrel, it mixed with water already there. Water causes a more violent chemical reaction. The chemical/water mixture burns and sometimes explodes as well as producing the toxic gas.
The distributing company building and two adjoining structures were evacuated. South Salt Lake Fire Chief Robert Adams was unsure exactly how many people were sent home for the day but estimated that 100 was a fairly accurate figure.
Fire units from South Salt Lake and the county's Hazardous Emergency Response Team arrived and put the fire out using dry materials by 11:30 a.m.
After the fire was put out, workers from ARTUS, an environmental cleanup company, contacted the manufacturer, Degesch America Inc., about the best way to handle the chemical and stabilize it for transport. Diamant said workers from ARTUS reported that the manufacturer told them to mix it with soapy water. The fire started again, and fire-fighters were dispatched about 3:15 p.m.
The fire was put out a second time by pouring truckloads of sand next to the barrel. Hazardous material experts, looking something like blue astronauts, spread the sand out and used a long rope to pull the barrel over. The contents mixed in a small explosion.
After adding more sand, the mixture was finally ready for transport away from the scene. Firefighters ultimately cleared the scene a few minutes before 10 p.m.