Conflagration at a frozen foods plant
Circumstances of the loss
At about 6.30 in the morning, a fire was reported in one of the manufacturer's three production sheds. Metre-high flames were already leaping into the air when the first firefighters arrived. The fire had broken out in a fully automated palletising system and was spreading through the huge 6,000-m2 shed at high speed. People living nearby said the building was already engulfed in a sea of flames by 6.45. Private homes in the vicinity were threatened by explosions.
Further fire-fighting teams were alerted and the fire brigade at a nearby military airport also sent support. Altogether 300 firefighters were in action. Fire-fighting was made additionally difficult by the fact that the fire caused several ammonia cooling pipes to burst, forming a toxic cloud of smoke over the scene. As the cloud started shifting towards the town, the inhabitants were evacuated and a busy railway line running beside the factory site was closed for an hour.
Since there was no chance of saving the production unit, the fire brigade concentrated its efforts on protecting the neighbouring buildings. The municipal water supply was partially diverted and water was also taken from 18 hydrants. It was afternoon before the last firefighters were able to leave.
Loss
Although the fire was discovered in its incipient stage, it spread extremely fast before the fire-fighting teams arrived. The unit was declared a total loss after the flames spread at a rapid pace across packaging film, the transportation system with a combustible plastic link conveyor belt, and the combustible roof area consisting of wood lagging with bitumen cladding. The building had reinforced concrete columns and trusses with a roof cladding of trapezoidal plates with foam insulation and plastic film lining.
The palletising section had profiled-metal composite panels with foam insulation for the outer walls, whilst the production section had wall panels of cellular concrete and an interior finishing with profiled-metal composite panels, also foam-insulated.
Besides the palletising section, the flames also destroyed production lines, conveyor systems, and shrink-wrapping and freezing facilities. In addition, fumes, extinguishing media, and ammonia escaping from the refrigeration plant made most of the foodstuffs unfit for consumption.
The two neighbouring buildings – the production and refrigeration units – did not suffer any thermal damage but needed to be cleaned up after the fire.
Cause of loss
Initial findings suggest that the fire had been caused by a technical defect in a machine that bundles packets of frozen vegetables and ready-made meals. In this final stage of packaging, boxes of frozen foods are sorted and wrapped in PE film. The film is subsequently heat-shrunk – and it was the hot air blower that had overheated due to a defect.
Summary
In this, the second largest loss to hit Germany's food industry in 2006, the huge production unit was completely destroyed. The fire had broken out in the automatic palletising section and quickly spread through the entire building. The method of construction also had an adverse effect: highly combustible materials like composite panels with foam insulation. Only the fire compartment separations to the next building and the cold store prevented the fire from spreading further.
On the basis of initial estimates, an overall loss of up to €70m is to be expected for the damage to buildings, operating equipment, and stocks, and for loss minimisation measures and business interruption.
« back | continue »