Champion Feeds had to close its doors temporarily after a fire knocked the facility out of commission early last Wednesday morning.
Around 5 a.m. on Feb. 27, Westlock town firefighters responded to a fire at the livestock feed and supply plant in the west industrial park.
When they arrived, smoke was coming from inside the plant. The crew called in backup from the Westlock Rural and Pickardville departments, said town fire chief Stuart Koflick.
It took firefighters several hours to get the blaze under control and ensure any hot spots were fully extinguished, he said.
Part of the reason it took a while to control the fire was all the plant equipment and machinery, which Koflick said the firefighters had to work around.
No one was injured in the ordeal, the chief added, and the cause is under investigation.
The fire was contained within the boiler and electrical rooms, but the damage was extensive enough to knock the plant out of commission for a few days, said Champion marketing and communications co-ordinator Nicole Webb.
She said the plant lost power, disabling its lights, heating system and phone network.
Last Wednesday, she said there was no telling how long the plant would remain inactive, but that’s not going to stop the company from serving its customers.
“We are going to do everything possible to minimize disruption of service to our customers and suppliers,” Webb said.
One way the company is planning to do that is to have the other mills try to pick up the slack. The phone lines were the first priority, so customers and suppliers with questions could stay in the loop during the transition. However, she said if the Westlock phone lines remained down, it would be best to contact the Barrhead administrative office at 780-674-3155.
This was not the first time a fire had burned at the plant.
On May 27, 2009, a fire started in a seed processing silo, causing more than $100,000 in damage.
