PEORIA, Ill. – All the silos damaged as a result of an explosion at the BioUrja plant in Peoria more than two weeks ago are almost a memory.
Peoria Interim Fire Chief Shawn Sollberger says all the leaning silos have been taken down, and are in the process of being moved to safe location on site.
“From a demolition standpoint, I’m not sure things could have gone any better,” said Sollberger. “The crew from Alpine Demolition Services has been extremely professional. They’ve done great work in a really short period of time.”
Sollberger says silo number 75 — where the original blast occurred — is still standing, but there’s also still a lot of grain in it that has yet to be removed.
The Fire Department’s around-the-clock fire watch will end Sunday at 7:00 a.m., but the chief says crews will return if needed.
The beginning of the end is also giving Sollberger some time to reflect.
“I know I’m a smarter man today than I was at 2,000 hours on May 11,” said Sollberger. “To take that learning process, to take all of that and put it together into a critique and do an internal analysis within our department, I think we’re going to come out better on the back side of that.”
Sollberger says that learning includes everyone he’s dealt with on site, from BioUrja, to the company that used foam to help put the grain fire out, to even the Chicago Fire Department.
