PEORIA, Ill. — Asked where this emergency ranks for him on a scale of 1 to 10, Peoria’s Interim Fire Chief Shawn Sollberger tells WMBD News, “…this would be an eleven.”
Sollberger, his firefighters and a large team of engineers, EPA officials and some resources from rural fire districts have teamed up and continue putting their heads together in hopes they can prevent both another collapse and another potential explosion at the stricken Bio-Urja Renewables grain processing plant near downtown Peoria’s riverfront.
“One of these silos is still burning,” said Sollberger.
He explained that there are burning embers still buried deep down within the remaining pile of grain that, if released, could catch with the floating grain dust and create another explosion, or perhaps a series of explosions.
He says a potential collapse of the already damaged and stricken grain silos, could create the same kind of an event.
“If this thing falls the wrong way into the other six bins that you can see from the riverside, we’re dealing with a different kind of issue…very substantial.”
Sollberger says crews are “definitely in a very fluid situation right now.”
He expressed optimism in the face of it, however, saying Bio-Urja’s engineers along with everyone pitching in to help is doing a “good job”.
He said he hopes to see the damaged grain bins safely removed by early Wednesday.
