Missoula Rural Fire Responds to Bag House Blaze at Roseburg Forestry Products [YouTube]

Crews from Missoula Rural and Missoula City Fire responded late Monday afternoon to a fire inside the bag houses at Roseburg Forest Products on Raser Drive.

Missoula Rural Fire Chief Bill Colwell said the call came in just before 4:00 p.m.

"Crews from Missoula Rural Fire and Missoula City Fire are currently working a fire in the bag houses at Roseburg Forestry Products," Colwell said. "The fire is being fought with a ladder truck with a master stream. The incident commander at the scene has already started to release equipment, which makes me believe the fire is knocked down and he's getting ready to begin the process of going in and mopping up."

Colwell describes the purpose of a bag house at a forest products plant.

"It's a lot like a huge vacuum cleaner bag that collects the real fine dust products from a lumber operation," he said. "The bag house filters those fine dust particles so they don't become an explosion hazard. There are times when static or a spark from a welding operation can get into one of those bags and cause a fire."

Colwell said no Roseburg employees or firefighting personnel were injured in the incident.