Cleanup begins at Echo Lake Foods plant in Burlington
BURLINGTON (WITI) -- After more than 36 hours, the massive fire at the Echo Lake Foods plant in Burlington is officially out as of 9 a.m. Friday, February 1st. The fire trucks are all gone. But in their place are utility crews.
The eight-alarm fire broke out on Wednesday evening, January 30th and left 300 without work. A fireball of flames filled the night sky in Burlington on Wednesday night, as second shift workers ran to safety. The fire burned about 20,000 square feet of the 70,000 square foot plant.
Standing just feet away from the pile of rubble, Echo Lake Foods employee Jesus Murillo has a big problem. His car is encased in ice. Murillo's solution includes a shovel and a lot of persistence.
Murillo was inside the Echo Lake Foods plant on Wednesday when it caught fire. He says it went up quickly -- and about 50 employees ran as quick as they could.
Burlington City Administrator Kevin Lahner says it could be more than a week before fire officials know the cause of the fire. In the meantime, the cleanup has begun. Crews on Friday were seen on the remaining roof, and utility crews circled the building.
"A lot of water went on this fire. Two million gallons alone from the city's resources, plus what was drawn from Echo Lake," said Lahner.
All of that water is now frozen. That could slow things down for both the cleanup and those hoping to reclaim their cars.
Echo Lake Foods makes egg products and breakfast foods. It lost its production operation in the blaze.
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