Sterling firefighters responded to a call at Sterling Ethanol, 450 Angus Ave, Wednesday, as backup to the facility’s safety team. A hydraulic leak was blamed for the brief fire on a steam turbine.
Fire Chief Lavon Ritter said the call came in at 2:40 p.m. Wednesday. Ritter said the fire was out by the time his people arrived on the scene, but they stayed to assist in the aftermath.
“We stood by, did a secondary search, helped ventilate the building, and waited for (the turbine) to cool down,” Ritter said.
Dave Kramer, general manager at Sterling Ethanol, said the turbine uses waste steam created during the ethanol-making process to provide secondary power to the plant. He said a hydraulic hose on a steam turbine leaked, squirting hydraulic fluid onto the hot turbine. Kramer said the safety team had the fire out within 10 to 15 seconds.
Chief Ritter had high praise for the Sterling Ethanol safety team and their response to the incident.