Below is a correspondence from Fire Chief William Cavanaugh to Town Manager Eric Slagle, which was shared with the public on February 20, providing an update on the situation at 333 Andover Street in Wilmington:
As you are aware, there is a smoke condition that is originating from 333 Andover St. Depending on the atmosphere, wind (speed and direction), and temperature, is impacting the neighborhoods of Ashwood Ave, Fiorenza Dr. Hensey Way, Andover St., and the other streets in those neighborhoods. While we have been closely monitoring the pile of natural wood chips smoldering since we were notified in mid-December, it is obvious that the owners need the intervention of the Fire Department to eliminate the smoke and the continued risk of reignition.
We were first notified in September by the resident of 333 Andover St that there was a fire on the property. Wilmington Fire crews responded and extinguished visible fire in the tree line and a log pile to the left side of the wood chip pile. At this point, the extent of the fire was thought to be contained to that area. Within weeks’ time, we were again called out on numerous occasions to address smaller areas of fire. At this point, a survey of the entire pile was conducted and showed via thermal camera that there were pockets of heat and fire moving across the pile. We decided to initiate a long-term operation that included heavy equipment, constant use of a hydrant, and many operational periods with Wilmington Fire personnel.
After multiple weeks of turning all of the material in the pile over with an excavator and wetting down everything, we suspected that the fire had been extinguished and the remaining heat removed from the pile. We verified this multiple times by digging additional holes and using the thermal imaging camera. When all was finished, we used an estimated 3.5 million gallons of water and spent 5000+ man hours on site. There was no lack of effort in trying to mitigate this issue in the fall.
Unfortunately, mulch (wood chip) fires are very stubborn and difficult to extinguish. In December, we were again notified by the resident of 333 Andover St that she was seeing smoke again. We informed them that this is an issue that they would need to address as it is not an immediate threat to life or property and that it is due to the wood chips that are being stored on site. The residents attempted to turn the pile themselves, but this introduced more air to the underlying material and has caused an increasing amount of smoke to emanate from the pile. We have monitored the smoke and checked the air with our meters (checking Oxygen concentration, Hydrogen Sulfide, Carbon Monoxide, and Explosive gas) with nothing showing as elevated. While this is not a sign of “air quality”, it is a measure of industry standard items that can have an immediate impact on life. I think it is important to note that this pile is all-natural material. In our initial operation, we found one old snowblower (not burned), and one six foot by ten foot piece of fiberglass that had a small amount of charring. Both were removed and are not involved in the current smoldering.
The Town has engaged with the property owners through their attorney to reiterate the importance of prioritizing the mitigation of the smoke and to offer assistance. As of today, we have a plan that I believe will finally extinguish the pile. We will be bringing in equipment again to dig out the material and making sure that we are wetting everything down and giving it a few days of monitoring before placing it in smaller piles. We have favorable weather conditions coming up that give me more confidence in using a hydrant without threat to have a water main issue.
The plan is to have equipment on site by the middle of next week or at the latest, early the week after. We will use the hydrant on Andover St. and start a consistent, aggressive push to eliminate the smoke as quickly as possible. Once the smoke is gone, there will be an extended period of operation to move the remaining material and check for any remaining heat.
William F. Cavanaugh, III
Chief
Wilmington Fire Department
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