Fire departments should educate and train firefighters on the hazards associated with different types of silos as well as the appropriate tactics needed.
This was one of the recommendations NIOSH officials made after investigating the 2019 death of a Clinton, IA firefighter killed in a grain silo explosion.
Lt. Eric Hosette, 33, was killed and Firefighter Adam Cain was seriously injured when a grain storage silo exploded at the Archer Daniels Midland plant in Clinton.
NIOSH conducted interviews and reviewed radio transmissions and policies as part of their probe.
They determined that Hosette and Cain were on top of the silo to flow water. When they moved the hose to saturate more of the burning product, an explosion occurred.
Hosette fell 85 feet from the edge of the silo, landing on a fiberglass awning below, and then onto the ground. Cain was catapulted into the air who then fell into silo #2, landing on the still smoldering pellets.
Hosette was pronounced dead at a hospital while Cain was hospitalized for several weeks following the incident.
Authors of the report determined contributing factors included
• Smoldering propagation due to chemical reaction/self-ignition of silage
• Emergency planning at corn processing facility
• Fire suppression tactics and pre-incident planning
• Explosion due to application of water through the top hatches of silo
NIOSH investigators also suggested fire departments develop a pre-incident plan for all high-hazard occupancies in their jurisdictions.
In addition, they recommended that federal, state, county and local officials should ensure the applicable fire and life safety codes are enforced at high-hazard occupancies.
Also, processing plants also need to properly operate and maintain their silos and implement the applicable requirements of NFPA.
Months after answering his final alarm, fellow Clinton firefighters dedicated its new ladder truck as No. 190 (Hosette's badge number) and dubbed it 'Hoss.'
Susan Nicol | News Editor
Susan Nicol is the news editor for Firehouse.com. She is a life member and active with the Brunswick Volunteer Ambulance & Rescue Company, Oxford Fire Company and Brunswick Vol. Fire Co. Susie has been an EMT in Maryland since 1976. Susie is vice-president of the Frederick County Fire/Rescue Museum. She is on the executive committee of Frederick County Volunteer Fire and Rescue Association. She also is part of the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems (MIEMSS) Region II EMS Council. Susie is a board member of the American Trauma Society, Maryland Division. Prior to joining the Firehouse team, she was a staff writer for The Frederick News-Post, covering fire, law enforcement, court and legislative issues.
