The Jamestown Sun
A fire Wednesday at Berlin Farmers Elevator in Berlin, N.D., destroyed a grain elevator.
No one was injured.
LaMoure, Edgeley, Fullerton, Jud and Marion firefighters responded to a page around 11:45 p.m., said LaMoure County Sheriff Robert Fernandes.
Dick Boyer, manager at Berlin Farmers Elevator said he and Berlin Farmers Elevator board members had a meeting at the site which lasted until about 9:30 p.m. He said he didn't notice anything unusual at that time.
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The grain elevator holds about 75,000 bushels in one section and about 90,000 bushels in another, Boyer said. The elevator was about 80 percent full, he said.
Edgeley firefighter Jerry Lagodinski said the fire had engulfed the elevator by the time the firefighters got there, so the main concern was to save what was around it.
The fire looked like a giant candle, he said.
"As far as putting the fire out, there was no such thing," Lagodinski said.
The cause of the fire is unknown.
Fernandes said he was unsure who initially reported it.
Many firefighters and volunteers left around 5:30 a.m. Thursday. The fire was still not completely extinguished that evening but it was under control, Fernandes said.
Boyer said neighbors, ranchers and residents from local Hutterite colonies helped put out the fire along with the firefighters.
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Fernandes said volunteers, some from Goodwill in LaMoure, brought water bottles. All the help from the neighbors and volunteers was appreciated, he said.
An insurance adjuster and a state fire marshal are expected to inspect the area today, Fernandes said.
"It's sad. It was a heck of a loss," Fernandes said.
