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Luverne firefighters respond to Thanksgiving bin fire

By
Lori Sorenson

A grain bin fire south of town kept the Luverne Fire Department busy during the Thanksgiving holiday.
According to fire chief David Van Batavia, a passerby called 911 around 3 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 27, to report a dryer fire at Greg Gabrielson’s farm at 1320 91st Street near Schoneman Ponds.
“There was smoke coming out of the bin and flames shooting out the top,” Van Batavia said.
The 7,000-bushel bin had recently been filled with 5,000 bushels of corn when the fire started.
He said it was the center bin of three grain bins on the yard with a hog barn behind them and a propane tank nearby.
“There was nowhere we could empty the grain but out the front,” Van Batavia said, adding that a grain vacuum was used to get a good share of the corn out.
“Once it got too smoky to see, we laid down a bunch of foam.”
The layer of grain near the bottom was “melted” together in a crust that trapped heat underneath.
The fire department — about 20 guys and six units — were on the scene for 12 hours, returning to the fire hall around 3 a.m. Thursday.
Then, around 10 a.m. Thanksgiving Day, they were called back for a couple of hours to cool down smoldering grain.
Van Batavia said its unclear how much of the corn was salvaged or if the bin was a total loss, but he noted that it was the first call for his department that required backup air supply.
“It was quite a job,” he said.
Greg and Joanne Gabrielson put a thank-you ad in this week’s Star Herald (see page 11) thanking Mike Stroh for noticing the smoke and calling in the fire and also thanking the fire department for their long hours extinguishing the blaze.
“Most people, fortunately, will never watch the Luverne Fire Department up close when they are on a fire,” they wrote.
“We did, and we were very impressed how they worked as a well-trained team.”
They thanked fire crews for the long hours working on the bin and for returning on the holiday to cool it down again.
“We are very fortunate to have such a great fire department in our community,” the Gabrielsons wrote.

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