3 firefighters checked out for burns at silo fire

MONON, Ind. (WLFI) - Three firefighters were sent to the hospital for minor burns after a silo fire in White County Tuesday.

The silo caught fire at Rockland Flooring in Monon around 1 p.m.

Nine departments were called out, as well as about 50 firefighters.

Monon Fire Chief Brad Hahn said three firefighters had very minor burns and were checked out at the emergency room as a precautionary measure and quickly released.

The silo stored sawdust that is used to help reheat the nearby facility. Firefighters estimate there were three semi loads of sawdust inside. In order to put the fire out, they had to remove all of the sawdust.

"The silo is not completely full," said Capt. Jamie Myers with the Monon Fire Department. "With the heat and the sparks on the inside, as soon as the oxygen gets there, the combustion of the sawdust catches back on fire."

Firefighters believe the fire sparked when a boiler was turned back on after the holiday weekend.

Crews were on scene for about eight hours, finally leaving around 9 p.m.