September 6, 2019
By Jessie Higgins
The huge pile started to rot after being soaked during historic spring flooding that hit northern Missouri, western Iowa and Nebraska, said Patrick Burke, a spokesman for Gavilon, a Nebraska-based company that owns a grain elevator on the property near Rock Port.
"With all that pressure on the decaying beans, it started to heat up," Burke said. "Then, we had a week straight of 100- to 110-degree days. So, essentially, it just combusted."
It is common for grain elevators to store soybeans -- and other grains -- in large outdoor piles, Burke said.
This pile caught fire in mid-July, and crews have been unable to extinguish the blaze for a number of reasons, Burke said.
When the fire started, much of the surrounding area still was underwater, and the roads were impassable, making it impossible for fire crews to reach the site, Burke said.
"Our only access to the facility for a while was by air boat," he said....
