Firefighters from numerous emergency agencies responded to a fire that occurred on April 23 at a Mountaire Farms poultry plant in Selbyville, Delaware.
According to a press release from Mountaire, the fire occurred around 3:45 p.m. that day, after an electrical transformer failed at the facility. All Mountaire employees were evacuated safely from the plant, and there were no injuries.
According to a Facebook post by the Selbyville Volunteer Fire Company, firefighters, upon arrival, discovered a fire on the roof with potential exposures to ammonia tanks.
“The crews on scene made a quick stop to the fire and kept the chemical tanks cool. Quick work by the departments on scene brought this potentially damaging fire under control quickly,” the Facebook post read.
Mountaire Farms, in its press release, stated that the fire was contained in the transformer area on the roof. The remainder of the facility, including its interior, was not affected.
Mountaire decided to close the plant for the rest of the day as well as on April 24, but it had plans to have the plant back in operation on April 25.
Selbyville firefighters were assisted by firefighters from the Delaware communities of Roxana, Bishopville, Frankford, Gumboro, Millsboro, Bethany Beach, Millville, Dagsboro and Georgetown, as well as from Bishopville, Maryland.
“Mountaire would like to thank all first responders and those who acted quickly to this plant incident,” Mountaire Farms stated. “We are blessed to have so many men and women dedicated to serving our communities.
Mountaire Farms, according to the WATTAgNet Top Poultry Companies Database, is the seventh largest broiler company in the United States, slaughtering an estimated 6.63 million chickens on a weekly basis.
The fire at the Mountaire facility was the second fire to occur at a U.S. poultry plant in less than one week’s time. A fire was also reported at Tyson Foods’ poultry processing plant in Dawson, Georgia, on April 18. That plant remains offline while officials evaluate the damages, but employees are still being compensated for a regular 40-hour work week.
