CA: Spontaneous combustion of manure starts 200-acre blaze

ap on Bakersfield Californian ^ | 1/7/07 | AP

[NormsRevenge]

The spontaneous combustion of a manure pile sparked a blaze that grew to about 200 acres Sunday, fire officials said.

No injuries were reported and no structures were threatened.

The blaze, dubbed the Red Star Fire because of its origins at the Red Star Fertilizer Co., was 50 percent contained, said Jonathan Pangburn, a spokesman with the California Department of Forestry.

The fire was expected to be fully contained by late Sunday.

The blaze, which consisted of a main 175-acre fire and several smaller ones, was reported shortly before 5 a.m. It was partially burning in Prado Regional Park near Highway 71, the Prado Basin Park and the Mill Creek Drainage basin, an area marked by willow trees and mixed brush.

A total of 400 firefighters, backed by four air tankers and several helicopters, battled the blaze complicated by winds gusts of 20 to 25 miles per hour blowing from the north and northeast.

Red flag warnings were in effect until 6 p.m. Monday.

[NormsRevenge]

Holy S....!

Spontaneous Combustion Happens!

[GSlob]

What a crap!

[greyfoxx39]

Anyone know the whereabouts of Bill Clinton?

[Revolting cat!]

It's hitting the fan!

[billhilly]

When this happens in Congress, entire nations burn.

[penelopesire]

lol....

[bannie]

Hot poop.

[Right Wing Assault]

Anyone know the whereabouts of Bill Clinton?

The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind.

[tubebender]

Something smells here...

[ArmstedFragg]

I used to live near a mushroom farm. They took in 'used straw' from local stables to feed their crop. Fires were a regular event. You have to bulldoze the darn things to get them put out. Really delightful to be downwind of, too.

[lawdude]

Pelosi's district, I bet.

[Brilliant]

Biomass pollutes the air.

[NormsRevenge]

We never had a pile combust on the farm ,never had that huge a piles but I know of what you speak odor and proximity / wind-wise.

[GoldCountryRedneck]

Global Warming crowd will probably protest tomorrow...

[WideGlide]

The EPA should order Californians to stop eating all that spicey Mexican food.

[Delta 21]

You can just hear the ozone layer deteriorating!

[fat city]

Oh oh- I'd better go out and clean up the dog crap in the backyard.

[JoeFromSidney]

It's not just manure and "used" straw that does this. I've seen haystacks combust spontaneously after a rain. The water enabled bacteria growth inside the haystack, the hay insulated the growth and kept the warmth in, until it got hot enough to ignite the hay.

[bannie]

Locally, seasonally, there are heaps (!) of almond shells: Huge sprinkler systems keep them from flaming up.

[DigitalVideoDude]

Seriously.. I live in OC. We are experiencing the infamous Santa Ana winds this weekend. I woke up this morning and went out for the paper. It's not unusual to smell a brush fire on windy days like this. Sure enough it's been smelling of fire all day and the sky has been smokey (No smell of manure though). We have looked hard in the local media for any news about a brush fire in the area with nothing reported. Until I read this in Free Republic, I had no idea what was burning.

[Hoosier-Daddy]

Who's going to post - "Aw, jeez, not that sh*t again!"

[truth_seeker]

Area was a big dairy farm location. Drive into it, and notice the distinctive smells.

California is the nation's Number One Agricultural state.

Some may be inclined to say this is bullshit.

Whatever.

[NormsRevenge]

Glad to be of service.

Looks like the area burning was a lot of brush and such near Chino, there is a portion of a park involved, Prado Regional Parl.

[Past Your Eyes]

I participate in a couple of discussion forums where this very thing happens occasionally.

[NormsRevenge]

There is definitely a lot of bull-smit in both the Valley and the Capitol.

A good place to keep your windows up is driving down stretches of I-5 in California's San Joaquin Valley .. feedlots on both sides, big ones..

I wonder how long before they are gone,, such is the impact per the environmentalists these days.

I grew up around beef, poultry and pork operations, they all stink in mass, I'll take bovine over fowl or pig anyday, if I had my choice, that is. lol

[river rat]

There's still hope...

If we could just achieve the right circumstances with those damned Congress Critters -- they may just burst into flames...

Lord knows they're full of enough $hit to explode.

Semper Fi

[Candor7]

That's Global Warming. Blame Al Gore, he lives in California now.

[Past Your Eyes]

Semper Fi to the both of you!

[dk/coro]

Awww, River Rat...You took the words right out of my mouth!

This is really a crappy thread....but, so much fun. *S*

Semper Fi, Mate. /s/ DK

[El Gato]

Red Star Fertilizer Co.

Sounds like some Watermelon (Green on the Outside, Red on the inside) affair, staffed by 50 and 60 something hippies.

Like Wow Man.

[CrazyIvan]

"Red Star Fertilizer Co.

Sounds like some Watermelon (Green on the Outside, Red on the inside) affair, staffed by 50 and 60 something hippies.

Like Wow Man.

Well, it does sound like they were smoking some good sh*t!

[El Gato]

Sounds like some Watermelon

But it's apparently not. I found a reference to a a 1959 radio ad for "Red Star Fertilizer Ad "with DDT insecticide".

[Navy Patriot]

origins at the Red Star Fertilizer Co.

So that's what's under the Sacramento Capitol dome!

[tubebender]

My Mother was partial to a sacked cow manure for her garden called Bully Boy...

[WestVirginiaRebel]

Huh, I thought this was about the state legislature there for a second...

[keepitreal]

When did Congress start meeting in California?