ST. ANNA, Wis. — An investigation has been completed into the dumpster fire at Bremer Manufacturing back in 2009 that killed St. Anna Firefighter Steven Koeser.
On December 29, 2009 A dumpster caught fire at Bremer Manufacturing Company Inc., located at W2002 Co. Highway Q in the Town of New Holstein. Calumet County Sheriff Deputies and the St. Anna Fire Department were dispatched to the scene.
While attempting to subdue the flames with water and suppressant foam, an explosion occurred from within the dumpster; killing one volunteer firefighter while eight others sustained injuries.
The incident has been thoroughly investigated by the Department of Justice Fire Marshal's Office, Calumet County Sheriff's Department and the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and found to be of undetermined cause.
Based on all available information, the following determinations were made regarding the origin and cause of the fire/explosion incident:
- The fire originated within the damaged refuse container, which contained aluminum alloy shavings and 55 gallon steel barrels of aluminum dross (slag).
- The cause of the fire is classified as "undetermined", however there is no information available to indicate that the fire was as a result of an intentional act.
- The explosion occurred from within the refuse container.
- The cause of the explosion was as a result of the fire suppression efforts and the introduction of water and fire suppressant foam
The worst-case scenarioDoes your department have a SOP/SOG for dumpster fires?
By Chief Adam K. Thiel
FireRescue1 Editorial Advisor
A report was released this week on a dumpster fire that killed St. Anna, Wis., Firefighter Steven Koeser last year. The tragic outcome of this incident reinforces the need to consider the worst-case scenario on every response.
WFRV News reported an explosion occurred from within the dumpster while crews attempted to subdue the flames with water and suppressant foam.
If we're really honest with ourselves, I expect many fire departments would address this apparent dumpster fire in similar fashion.
Why? Because over time we get conditioned to doing things a certain way, even if we know it's a risky approach, and getting the same results. (The technical term for this phenomenon is normalization of deviance.)
How many dumpster or vehicle fires have you been to where nothing bad happened? How many times have you been part of an aggressive interior attack on the inside of a dumpster to save, uh, trash? Come on, be honest...
I recently visited a major northeast fire department that had several pumpers outfitted with roof-mounted turrets to enhance their foam firefighting capabilities along the roadway.
I thought it was a great idea, even more so when one of the firefighters told me they were starting to use it on dumpster fires instead of placing themselves at risk for someone else's garbage. Makes sense, doesn't it?
Does your department have a SOP/SOG for dumpster fires involving unknown or hazardous materials? (Don't all dumpsters contain unknown — and potentially hazardous — materials, regardless of their location?)
Considering the circumstances in this incident, maybe we should just protect exposures (from a distance) and let dumpster fires burn themselves out? What's the downside; public perception?
Frankly, I think the average citizen would totally understand if we said we weren't going to place firefighters in harm's way to save their trash; I'd much rather have that conversation than trying to explain why mommy or daddy was killed to save someone's garbage.
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