Risley Pellet Solutions Fire

Feb 6, 2007

Ten fire departments responded to early-morning blaze

An explosion overnight at a pellet plant means the loss of about a dozen jobs in the Village of Monticello.

Some people could hear the explosion from three miles away. The local fire chief calls it a dust explosion and says two people working the overnight shift were injured.

"Just before 3 pm, we were dispatched for a report of explosion on the east side of the village," Corporal Szvon Conway, with the Monticello Police Department, says.

Police and fire units responded to the plant, where they say, they found one employee outdoors, another yelling from inside of the burning building. The plant makes wood pellets for stoves.

Police say both employees were taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. One remained in the hospital as of late Tuesday afternoon.

Ten fire departments responded to the fire: Monticello, New Glarus, Albany, Brooklyn, Monroe, Brodhead, Belleville, Argyle, Evansville and Blanchardville   contained the fire after about three hours.

The business owner said late Tuesday afternoon he plans to re-build, but it will take time due to the heavy damage.

Above photos show fire in the morning hours of Feb. 7 and later on as department was called back several times to extinguish numerous hot spots. Tanker operations were setup when hydrant pressure got to a low point due to heavy master stream usage. Last photo shows the property as of Feb 27 as clean up proceeds.