The Martensville Fire Department (MFD) responded to a call regarding a fire at BN Metals on Highway 12 near Affiliated Auto at approximately 2pm on October 1st.
The blaze was located within a garbage/recycling pile that was approximately 6000 square metres in size. In order to isolate the fire, an excavator, ran by personnel from BN Metals was used to put a break in the pile, which was done to help eliminate any chance of spreading to another area.
MFD Fire Chief Kurtis Dyck stated that as of right now, they believe that the fire started due to a spark or ember from a controlled burn taking place nearby. “That is what we believe at this time. Controlled burns take place regularly at this particular business and I am hoping that that will be something that is addressed once this is all done; however, that is out of my hands,” Dyck said.
The MFD had assistance from fire crews in Dalmeny, Warman and Saskatoon; as well as from Emergency Management and Fire Safety (EMFS) out of Prince Albert, who sent man power and equipment; however, the equipment malfunctioned and therefore was unable to be used.
As of 6:00pm on October 2nd, the blaze is still burning and Dyck noted that he spoke to Sask Environment at 4pm, who he told that the fire would take another 12 to 24 hours to extinguish. “Our best case would be 12 hours and worst case 24 hours. That is our best guess at this time.”
Currently, the MFD has 6 to 8 members on a rotating basis working tirelessly to get the blaze under control. “Initially, we had a lot of man power on the scene until we felt that we had the fire contained. Then we released them. Right now, extinguishing is being done by the Martensville Fire Department and we have Dalmeny and Warman supplying water with tankers,” Dyck explained.
“We are working as fast and efficiently as possible to ensure it is put out and we are following recommendations from Sask Environment and the Ministry of Environment regarding air quality and water runoff. It is time consuming because we can’t just dump water on it, we have to pick it apart and work at it, but the route that we are currently taking is the best option,” Dyck stated.
Since the fire began, a plume of smoke could be seen from kilometres away and Dyck reminds motorists to take caution when on the highway as visibility is difficult at times due to the smoke.