A disaster was narrowly averted at Westlock Terminals early Friday morning after a fire broke out in the main elevator by the office.
The fire was discovered just after 7 a.m. by marketing manager Rod Fischer, who was going to move some grain when he smelled smoke.
He opened a trapdoor in the elevator and smoke came billowing out.
Although they were able to get the fire under control quickly with buckets of water, they called the fire department as a precaution. Firefighters were on scene for about an hour scanning with thermal cameras making sure the fire was out, Heck indicated.
Although the fire may have seemed minor, Heck said it could have caused some very serious damage.
“We almost lost the elevator,” he added.
Heck said they had a similar problem two to three weeks ago. Although there is no official cause of the fire, Heck suggested that it may have been the result of a faulty elevation light.
He noted they have repair people coming out from Lethbridge and they are assessing the damage right now.
Heck said the terminal won’t be used until it’s safe, noting that most of the repair work will be done over the weekend.
He said they will be replacing some of the elevation cups and the lower bearings on the elevation leg. They will also have to replace some of the belting, he noted.
The Westlock Terminals only recently built the new elevator.
Construction began in May, 2009. It was officially opened Nov. 5, 2010.
The terminal is now a state-of-the-art facility, which can move grain three times faster than the old facility, which has meant a huge efficiency gain for the grain producers in the region who use it.
