Cranbury warehouse sustains minor damage
By Maria Prato-Gaines
CRANBURY For the second day in a row, emergency crews from around the area gathered at a Brickyard Road warehouse on Wednesday trying to extinguish a smoldering collection of sawdust.
Employees at American Cabinetry Inc. reported that smoke had emerged from an exterior cyclone sawdust collector at the rear of the warehouse about 4 p.m. Tuesday, Cranbury Fire Marshal Joseph Seip said.
The fire was extinguished by 7 p.m., Mr. Seip said. In addition to the Cranbury Fire Department, crews from as far as Kendall Park, Helmetta and Millstone responded to the scene, primarily to provide additional water because there are no fire hydrants in the area. Cranbury established a portable pond on the property and the neighboring departments brought in tanker trucks, Mr. Seip said.
Firefighters from Cranbury, Hightstown, Plainsboro, Monroe and East Windsor returned Wednesday after employees again reported seeing smoke rise from the sawdust cylinder at about 11:15 a.m.
Despite gallons of water and foam that had been used the day before, there may have been hidden embers left burning, Mr. Seip said.
”Sawdust is hard, it confines itself,” he said. “They couldn’t get enough water to penetrate it.”
Officials were unable to estimate the damages Wednesday afternoon, but said that, aside from a few minor interior issues, the bulk of it appears to be to the outside extensions of the warehouse.
”The inside duct work collapsed,” Mr. Seip said.
Officials are still investigating the fire but believe that a mechanical problem with the cylinder caused a spark, igniting the sawdust.
”The best thing to do is clean all of the sawdust out,” Mr. Seip said Wednesday as he watched firefighters unplug pound after pound of sawdust from a hole only a few feet wide at the base of the cylinder.
The company’s general manager, Luigi Perri, said Wednesday that the warehouse has 24 employees, but that only a handful were there when the fire started because it was near closing time.
”We’ve never had this problem before,” Mr. Perri said. “Maybe it was a spark or maybe a wire.”
Mr. Perri praised the fire companies and said he plans to reopen as soon as the area had been cleaned, a task he expected to be completed within the next few days.
”They’re doing a super, super job and they’re risking their lives,” he said.