A massive fire burns down an old manufacturing building in Chickasha.
Chief Tony Samaniego with the Chickasha Fire Department estimates 1.5 million gallons of hand sanitizer fueled the fire at the Chickasha Manufacturing Building on Sunday. The intense flames and black billowing smoke drew a crowd.
“They were tall, they were big, and they were hot,” said Alicia Musshafen, who lives nearby. “I was really in shock that the building was engulfed.”
Nearly 100 firefighters from 15 different agencies responded the fire, only to find their tactics had to change.
“Because of the nature of the incident we went into a defensive strategy immediately,” said Chief Samaniego.
That means they couldn’t attack the blaze with water because of the highly flammable and hazardous contents inside.