Ridgefield tire fire a challenge for firefighters
RIDGEFIELD, Wash. - Hundreds of semitrailer tires caught fire north of Vancouver early Thursday afternoon, sending thick, black smoke into the air.
The fire was at Tri-Mountain Transport, located at 2305 N.E. 209th in Ridgefield. It started just before 1:30 p.m.
According to Clark County Fire & Rescue, the tires were burning in a 50-foot area and posed a problem for responding crews.
"If we attack it with water, we risk polluting the nearby stream," said Tim Dawdy with Clark County Fire & Rescue. "If we let it burn, the air is polluted. So we've got people called from Southwest Washington Clean Air and the Department of Ecology to figure out what to do. In the meantime, while we're negotiating, we'll put foam on the fire."
In the end, firefighters decided the best option was to blast it with water and knock down the flames. It appeared to be mostly out at about 4 p.m. with the tires just smoldering.
There were no injuries.
Video Courtesy Clark County Fire & Rescue
It would be easier to reason with a pre-menstrual woman than to fight this thing....Just let it burn itself out.
Are the firefighters at the tire fire getting tired? Either put the fire out, or go back to the station and eat pizza!
It takes a lot to get a tire to start burning. This wasn't a spark or a cig butt. That will probably be one hell of an EPA fine for someone..............
@Azacabazle You are absolutely correct in your summation!! I saw it all the time in the Eagle Creek/Estacada area as a sheriff when these alleged tire recyclers could not find a place to dump the excess at night. The sad part is proving that this fire was arson for profit and taxpayers end up footing the bill - these guys are not stupid...
This looks like the work of.........the tirefireator......
It was all a big misunderstanding. When the blonde receptionist heard the guys were burning rubber, she felt left out.
@correct Nothing like that smell is there and you are just jealous!!
Time for a weenie roast..............LOL
Tires don't just "catch" fire. They need some assistance.
as Ralph Wigam from the Simpsons says it smells like burning !.
I believe he said it "tastes" like burning.
Talk about a toxic mess!
I never understood why they don't remove the tires that are not burning.
For God's sake, just put the fire out. Â That's what we'd do in the old days. Â Now we will let it do as much damage as possible because no one has the guts or authority to do anything about it because some whacko enviromentalist might sue. Â
@Shadow Tire fires are different from other fires...they don't kill easy because they burn so hot and the runoff trying to cool it is really toxic with sulfur and sulfuric acid among other nasty compounds.
@Agness P Weatherby Better to risk a small stream, than pollute the atmosphere over a greater area, don't you think? "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of a few."
@Agness P Weatherby I really miss the good old days when you could put fires out the old fashion way and not give a horse's hat what earth nut environmentalists thought.
@Agness P Weatherby You do know that modern medicine still use 'leeches' to suck out blood and that 'witches' are highly sought after by older men and you need to MT where you can still pee & crap in the woods without any interference...
The good old days where the locals would now be drinking toxic water. Ahh yes, glory days indeed.
@JLO
Yes, the good old days when they used to put leaches on people to bleed them because illness was a sign that the humors were out of balance and a person had too much blood and the good old days when they burned witches because they did the devils work.  Yes, the world was a better place before science, environmentalists, and useless things like indoor plumbing.
As seen on the Simpsons, a tire fire can burn for years.
@xthc2012Â DANG! You beat me to it!
@safety-shmafety @xthc2012 Me too...you gotta be fast out here.