There are several biomass plant fire videos available on the web. This one from Sittard, Holland is probably the most dramatic; watch at 2 minutes, 14 seconds when a large explosion occurs:
Mayor William Martin of Greenfield included a letter regarding the Pinetree Power burner from Westminster, MA Town coordinator, Karen M. Murphy, in his pro-biomass task force report. It includes this passage: "On the down side, the facility by its very nature is prone to fires. There was a five-alarm fire at the plant in 2004 and there have been a number of other fires over the years. Extreme care should be given to implementing adequate safety measures in this regard..."
Finally, within the last week employees fled a significant fire at "Creative Biomass" (a wood pellet production facility in Fitchburg, MA):
BRIEF: Fire breaks out at Creative Biomass
By Emily Devlin, Sentinel and Enterprise, Fitchburg, Mass.Feb. 17--FITCHBURG -- Local and state fire officials worked to identify the cause of a fire inside a Creative Biomass warehouse on Tuesday, after Fitchburg firefighters responded to a call at around 3:10 p.m, according to Deputy Chief Kevin Curran.
"They're really not suspecting arson. However, they're trying to figure out what did happen," Curran said.
Three employees saw a "very quick flash fire," Curran said, before fleeing the warehouse and calling the Fire Department.
Creative Biomass is located at 22 Kimball Place, just off River Street.
The fire likely originated in a wood-pulverizing machine in the rear section of the warehouse, Curran said. The wood product the company uses to create its home heating wood pellets caught fire, which spread to other areas, Curran said.
The state Fire Marshal's office was on the scene carrying out an investigation just before 6 p.m., along with Fitchburg firefighters.
Curran said Creative Biomass employees would monitor the warehouse overnight, to watch out for any fire resurgence.
"They think they have a probable cause," Curran said.
Curran declined to provide further details, citing the ongoing investigation.
