WI Firefighters Injured in Fire that Nearly Drained City's Water

A large warehouse fire in Fort Atkinson Tuesday displaced about 50 residents and injured some of the 150 firefighters called to the scene.

The fire was reported around noon in the 700 block of Oak Street on the city's north side, police said. There was no one in the building at the time.

Fire Chief Daryl Rausch said at a press conference Tuesday evening that some firefighters suffered injuries due to the heat and were treated at the scene or taken to a local hospital.

Rausch said crews nearly "drained the city water system" while combating the blaze, leading to the department's decision to let the rest of the building and its contents burn. The warehouse contained tires for military vehicles, unspecified chemicals and cans from a local canning company.

Both the state Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency were on site monitoring the quality of the water and air in the area.

Emergency personnel from five counties were called to assist with the fire, Rausch said, with firefighters working in 20-minute shifts due to the intensity of the heat.

The Fort Atkinson Police Department ordered residents on parts of Oak and North Main streets to evacuate, Police Chief Adrian Bump said. Those needing a place to go were directed to the Fort Atkinson municipal building at 101 N. Main St. Residents were allowed to return home at 8 p.m.

City officials said north side residents could expect low water pressure and discolored water related to firefighting efforts.

Rausch said the fire would likely burn through the night and possibly into Wednesday, but crews had stopped the fire from reaching other buildings as of Tuesday evening. The city advised the public to avoid the area while crews continued to work overnight to contain the blaze.

"When I turned onto Main Street from the fire station, I knew that this building would be a total loss," Rausch said.

Due to the extent of the damage to the warehouse, Rausch said it is unlikely crews will be able to definitively determine the cause of the fire.

Another briefing on the fire was set for Wednesday at 7 a.m.

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