Lithium-ion batteries believed responsible for pole barn fire
MATTESON TWP. - Lithium-ion batteries likely caused a Thursday night fire at 674 Farrand Road, resulting in $250,000 in damage to a pole barn and its contents.
Bronson Fire Chief Scott Wilber and Coldwater Fire Marshal Steve Trall examined the structure Friday morning.
In the area where the fire started, "There were lithium-ion batteries for tools in chargers in that area. That's the most likely cause," Wilber said.
Damage was too extensive inside the mechanic's shop to make a definite determination.
Lost in the blaze were multiple antique tractors, an International Scout under restoration, and tools.
The roof collapsed on the 70-foot-by-40-foot barn, but some walls remained.
Bronson Fire responded, with mutual aid from Sherwood, Union City, and Colon, providing tankers.
Trucks ferried 80,000 gallons of water to the site for four-and-a-half hours to fight the blaze.
A neighbor spotted the fire and called 911 at 7:43 p.m.
Wilber said the early alert saved the family home just 25 feet away from the barn. The home suffered only melted siding.
The fire was the first official use of Bronson's new "Tanker 10."
The former main tanker, now housed at the Souther Road substation, responded.
New Bronson Tanker 10
Bronson Fire received delivery of Tanker 10 in December but needed time to outfit the giant 3,500-gallon tanker truck.
The tanker can also pump water with a 1,500-gallon-per-minute pump.
In December 2021, the Bronson Fire Board voted 4-3 to buy one of the last International truck chassis. International revamped its model and stopped production for two years.
That allowed Bronson to order the $335,000 truck from Rosenbauer Group in South Dakota for delivery this year rather than wait until at least 2026 at a higher cost.
The new tanker dwarfs the other trucks. Powered by a 450-horsepower Cummings diesel engine, the chassis has a 20,000-pound front axle and two 52,000-pound rear axles.
"We built it as heavy as we can because that truck carries 3,500 gallons of water. It has a very important job bringing us water in the rural areas where we don't have fire hydrants," Wilber said.
That load of water weighs 29,000 pounds, just under 15 tons.
The tanker responded to two fires before it was fully equipped. On Feb. 25, the truck responded to a pig barn fire and again the weekend of March 4 for grass fires.
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Wilber will show the community the new truck at a planned open house at the new Southern Road substation, which will be scheduled for later this summer.
-- Contact Don Reid: dReid@Gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: lithium-ion batteries suspected cause of Farrand Road pole barn fire
