Fire and leaking chemical product in Vegetable Cultivation Test Station (Sint-Katelijne-Waver)

A fire broke out in a shed of the Vegetable Cultivation Experimental Station on Duffelsesteenweg in Sint-Katelijne-Waver on Friday afternoon. The fire was quickly brought under control, but because a chemical liquid was also leaking, the fire brigade had their hands full cleaning it up.

A quantity of caustic potash, a highly corrosive product, escaped into the warehouse on Friday afternoon and ended up on electrical wires and a transformer. That caused a fire. “Some people noticed this and were able to extinguish most of the flames. We were able to limit our intervention in that area to a thorough follow-up check,” says officer Hans De Bondt of the Rivierenland fire zone.

Two people who carried out the extinguishing work were taken to hospital as a preventive measure for a check-up.

“It quickly became clear that a quantity of the product had run away and ended up on the floor in the warehouse. We have largely contained this to prevent it from spreading further. One part has been treated with absorbent material, another part has been pumped out.”

All in all, several hundred liters of the stuff would have run away. The fire brigade intervention took several hours. There has never been any danger to the environment. tdk