Firefighters use powder to extinguish Straumsvik smelter blaze

Firefighters extinguished a fire in a vehicle at the Straumsvik aluminum smelter using powder, mbl.is reported, citing Rio Tinto in Iceland chief executive Sunna Bjorg Helgadottir. No one was injured.

The fire started in an aluminum tapping vehicle in one of the smelter’s potrooms. The potroom was temporarily taken out of operation, and firefighting lasted less than two hours.

Employees called the fire brigade, which arrived about 20 minutes later. Helgadottir said water could not be used inside the potroom because of the high level of electricity use, so firefighters had to use powder, which takes longer.

She said staff and emergency responders followed all procedures, and operations were back to normal about half an hour after the incident.

The cause of the fire and the extent of any damage are not yet known. The company plans to investigate in the coming days and work to prevent a similar incident.