Tank bursts by Ag Department in Grygla

Farmer’s Union in Grygla is looking at a few thousand dollars in damage, caused by a tank explosion, on-site by the Ag department, last Friday, June 12th. The 1500-gallon tank that burst contained approximately $3,000 worth of liquid protein, which is a liquid feed supplement for cattle. The suspected cause was a poor ventilation system, combined with hot weather.

The Ag department keeps two storage tanks on-site that are filled with the supplement, which they deliver to area cattle farms. After the blowup, employees immediately started the clean-up process, which involved setting up a dike before anything got into the storm sewers. The Ag Department also put sand down to help absorb the liquid. 

Ag manager, Bob Thompson, wants to reassure area residents that liquid protein is a non-hazardous material. Because this is a rare occurrence and, again, isn’t hazardous, the new storage tank will continue to be stored on-site in the same manner. 

Thompson estimated the cost of damage to be a few thousand dollars, stating that the liquid protein itself exceeded $3,000; tank replacement will cost roughly $1,500, and cleanup possibly around $1,000.