Three firefighters suffered minor injuries Wednesday while battling a blaze at pallet supply company in Lincoln.
The fire broke out around 8 a.m. at Pallets Unlimited, 2390 Athens Ave., sending a thick column of smoke into the air. The blaze, which started in the pallets and spread to a structure, was contained Wednesday afternoon. Temporary road closures on North Foothills Boulevard and the intersection of Athens Avenue and Fiddyment Road were expected to be in place until Wednesday evening, fire officials said.
The firefighters were injured when a 5-inch water hose ruptured, causing the hose to move out of control and strike them, said Andrew Smith, public information officer for Cal Fire’s Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit.
“It’s 600 pounds per square inch. Because of the immense pressure and release of all of it, it moves the hose very easily,” Smith said.
Smith says a normal 1 3/4 -inch hose the crews use releases 100 to 300 psi, which is still very powerful.