NEW KNOXVILLE, Ohio – An explosion inside a lumber company silo in western Ohio killed one firefighter and injured several other firefighters and lumber yard employees Wednesday, authorities said.
Three firefighters, in critical, serious and fair conditions, were being treated at St. Rita’s Medical Center in Lima, hospital spokeswoman Brenda Burgy said. No other details about the type of injuries were available.
Fire Chief Scott Schroer said firefighters got a call shortly before 7 a.m. about a fire at the Hoge Lumber Co. They were hosing down dust in an effort to avoid an explosion when the explosion occurred, he said.
“What we had here was a dust silo that feeds the boiler for the lumber company,” Schroer said. “They’ve had fires in these before.”
Fire departments from New Knoxville, New Bremen, Wapakoneta and St. Marys Township responded.
The firefighter victim was Kenneth Jutte from the New Bremen department, county Coroner Dr. Thomas Freytag said. Jutte was one of two firefighters on top of the silo. Another firefighter in an aerial bucket was thrown to the ground.
A woman who answered the telephone at the lumber yard said no one was available to talk. “We’re keeping our lines open for emergencies,” she said before hanging up.
New Knoxville, a village of about 900 people, is about 50 miles north of Dayton.
The family-owned lumber company touts itself as the world’s largest maker of wood bowling lanes.
It recycles wood chips and other byproducts that are fed into its generator that supplies power to the plant and all of the village, which has about 900 residents.
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