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Colonel's
Island assessing damages...
For
the second time in eight months, fire has crippled the
agri-bulk port facility on Colonel's Island.
A
conveyor belt used to transport grains and other
agricultural cargo from the storage silos onto ships
caught fire early this morning.
The
fire severely damaged the portion of the conveyor that
extends from the docks over the water and onto ships,
leaving it inoperable.
The
extent of the damage still was being assessed late this
morning, said Robert Morris, Georgia Ports Authority
external affairs director. The effect of the fire on
day-to-day operations of the agri-bulk facility had not
been determined, Morris said.
Though
Morris said the dollar amount of damage had not been
determined, Lt. Jerome Johnson of the Glynn County Fire
Department said he heard initial estimates from port
authority personnel at the scene that damage could exceed
$1 million.
The
conveyor, which is about 20 feet tall and 20 feet wide,
was not in use when it caught fire at about 1 a.m.,
Johnson said.
The
damaged conveyor can extend about 90 feet from the dock
but was retracted to the dock at the time of the fire.
"Security
[personnel] on Colonel's Island found the fire and called
for help. When our trucks arrived, there was extensive
smoke and flames. The conveyor was fully involved at that
time," said Johnson.
No
other structures at the Brunswick port facility were
threatened and no injuries were reported.
Johnson
said that there did not appear to be anyone working in the
area when the fire started.
The
cause of the fire is under investigation by the county
fire department, though Johnson said it did not initially
appear to be suspicious in nature.
Firefighters
needed about 45 minutes to bring the fire under control,
and crews did not leave the scene until 3:53 a.m., after
putting out hot spots.
Firefighters
last found themselves battling a fire on Colonel's Island
that destroyed portions of a train trestle in May 2003.
The trestle was temporarily closed to train traffic
bringing agricultural cargo to the port facility.
"The
situation that happened last year with the trestle fire
was repaired at an incredibly fast pace," said
Morris.
The
Georgia Ports Authority hopes the problem with the
conveyor can be dealt with in an equally fast manner.
Agri-bulk,
including grain and soybeans, and automobiles are
Colonel's Islands two niche operations.
Original
article: The Brunswick News
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