Cause of landfill fire undetermined

Photo by kconnors via morgueFile.com

Photo by kconnors via morgueFile.com

What started a fire at the Pheasant Run landfill Monday night has not been determined, the fire chief in charge of the scene said.

Paris Fire Department Chief Roland Iwen said it could have been caused by something that was smoldering when it was dumped into the landfill, such as cooking coals, but even on that “I’d be guessing.”

The area of the landfill on fire was about 100 feet by 75 feet when Iwen arrived, he said. He then called for aid from three other neighboring fire departments; Bristol, Pleasant Prairie and Somers. The fire was at the top of the newer section on the northeast section of the property.

Firefighters also used some of the landfill’s bulldozers and personnel to help fight the fire.

“They worked well with us in extinguishing the fire,” Iwen said of the landfill workers.

The windy weather, which was knocking down trees and power lines that other fire departments were dealing with Monday night, also made the task at the landfill more difficult, Iwen said.

“With the high winds there, we had a tough time putting it out,” Iwen said. He estimated that Paris crews were on the scene for about one hour and 45 minutes.

Here’s our coverage from yesterday (with video)

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