A fire at a grain storage facility in Cork Harbor has been brought under control and firefighters continue to monitor the situation.
The port of Cork confirmed just before 11 am that a fire at the R & H Hall grain storage facility at the deep water dock in Ringaskiddy was now under control.
He said he had received no reports of any victims from the fire that was detected around 8:40 am.
In a statement, R & H Hall thanked the emergency services and the Port of Cork. team for their quick response and ongoing incident management.
“We would also like to apologize to local residents, neighboring businesses and our customers for any inconvenience caused by the incident,” said the document after local residents are advised to keep all doors and windows closed and stay indoors. The Saturday morning fire sent huge clouds of dark smoke that rose over Ringaskiddy and were visible throughout the port of Cork.
Firefighters remained on site to monitor the situation, but all ship operations at Ringaskiddy were suspended as a precaution.
Previously, a major emergency plan was activated by the port company while firefighters battled the fire.
Cork Fire
We are receiving several reports of a major fire in the Ringaskiddy area this morning. Take great care in the area, as smoke can impede visibility. pic.twitter.com/SYJ9oT5WLx
– Cork safety alerts (@CorkSafetyAlert) January 9, 2021
A fire broke out at the R&H Hall grain store in Ringaskiddy Deepwater Berth. Emergency Services are on site and the Porto Emergency Plan has been activated. Local residents are advised to keep all doors and windows closed and to stay indoors.
– Port of Cork #Keepingtheshowontheroad (@PortofCork) January 9, 2021
In a statement, the Port of Cork said the fire was “under control and there are no reports of any casualties. Emergency services remain in place to monitor the area. As a precaution, all ship operations at Ringaskiddy have been suspended until further notice. ”
The alarm went off at 8:43 am and three units of County Cork firefighters from Crosshaven, Carrigaline and Midleton responded and fired at the scene.
According to a spokeswoman for the Port of Cork, the company began its major emergency plan by assessing the fire and the risk it poses.
“The fire department is obviously taking the lead and we would be working closely with them to assess the risk that the fire poses in the area.
“So we are going to check if any of the other companies or properties near the fire site need to be evacuated, depending on the risk it poses.”
The Port of Cork emergency plan also involves assessing whether the fire poses a risk to shipping and other activities in the Ringaskiddy terminal area.
The Port of Cork is currently finalizing the development of a new € 80 million container terminal at a 13.5 hectare site in Ringaskiddy, in the lower port.
There are several pharmaceutical companies in the Ringaskiddy area, but none are believed to have needed to be evacuated as the fire is currently contained.
It is understood that the R & H Hall building is quite large and is used to store animal feed, but it is not thought to involve a large number of employees on site.
Ringaskiddy was the scene of a major fire over 25 years ago, when an explosion at the Hicksons Chemical plant led to a major emergency operation.
Pressure increased in a pot at the plant on August 5, 1993, causing it to explode, but fortunately no one was seriously injured in the accident.
Two employees suffered minor injuries in the explosion and the ensuing fire, but millions of euros in damage were caused and the factory was closed for a period.