Arends (west of town): (
Satellite, the wood elevator was between the silos and the office building.)
KQWC Raido
posted two phtos with the comment: "Firefighters from approximately 15 area fire departments battled flames to the Stonega United Coop elevator this morning. The call was received just before 1:30 this morning. Apparently no injuries in the overnight fire.Our thanks to Ryan Rupiper for providing the pictures of the fire at Stonega. We will share more information as soon as it comes in."
Dave Kroeger
shared with the comment: "Stonega Elevator Fire this [Apr 7] morning."
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| Sherry Anderson commented on the KQWC post, cropped |
A "before" image.
Wesley Peters
posted four photos with the comment:
Very Sad News Out of Hamilton County, IA Today.
Last night likely sometime during the thunderstorms that were rolling through the area, the former Stonega Co-op Co. elevator was destroyed by fire. It is unclear if it was struck by lightning.
Stonega Co-op Co. Headhouse built in 1972. 80,000-bushel capacity. Annex built in 1975. 210,000-bushel capacity. Both by Slettebo Construction Co.
I documented and visited this elevator twice, once on 3/4/2021 and a second time on 10/7/2023. On the second trip I visited and talked with the current owners. They gave me a tour of the complex and let me take some great photos including one looking down the center of the annex.
The owners had planned on repainting the former co-op signage on the distributor house and south facade and doing some general repairs to the exterior.
It was always a favorite to drive by on Highway 20. I last saw this elevator in person on March 31, 2024, Easter Sunday.
Thank you to Maddie Casady for bring this news to my attention.
Photographed on 3/4/2021 and 10/7/2023.
Photos courtesy of Wesley Peters.
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Ted Gregory posted seven photos and videos with the comment:
Railroad grain elevator burn.
Note there are videos included below.
This was a controlled, coordinated operation that was organized to give fire departments practice. There were departments from 19 counties present.
There is quite a bit of fire science that has to be used to bring down a 100 year old wooden structure that is so close to an operating railroad, businesses, and a highway.
Pump trucks were in a constant cycle bringing water from an off-site source to large pools at this remote location. The railroad side of the structure was kept much wetter- and thus cooler- thru the entire operation, to protect it from a sudden collapse onto the railroad. The hotter side of the building which burns faster was furthest from the track and so any collapse was directed away from the RR. Additionally, crews sprayed the tracks throughout the operation to keep the heat from bending the rail, setting ties on fire, etc.
Additional crews were stationed all around the structure to protect an office building on one side, existing silos on the other, and the highway and businesses across the street on the fourth side.
Both the railroad and the parallel highway were closed to protect trains and the public.
I tired to set these up in time order but FB kept flipping them in reverse. So the photo at the top was one of the last I took, and the early shots were at the bottom.
[I reversed Facebook's order. This is an example of where two wrongs make a right.]
[Some comments provide photos of big grain elevator fire in the late 1970s.]
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