BARDSTOWN, Ky. (AP) - Flames engulfed a seven-story bourbon
warehouse Monday, sending alcohol-fueled flames more than 100 feet
in the air.
The Jim Beam warehouse collapsed about two hours after the fire
was reported at 3 p.m. and continued burning. The company said the
metal-and-wood structure held about 19,000 barrels of bourbon, or
less than 2 percent of its bourbon inventory.
There were no reports of injuries.
Firefighters doused two nearby warehouses with water in an
attempt to save them, while a fire truck stood by at a third.
"Only one of them is on fire and they're working to make sure
that it stays that way and to contain the burning whiskey," said
Larry Green, city administrator.
Bourbon from the warehouse ran off into a nearby creek and
caught fire. Firefighters began to dam up the area, said Fire Chief
Anthony Mattingly.
Emergency officials did not know the fire's cause, but the
company said in a statement from its headquarters in Deerfield,
Ill., that lightning was to blame.
Warehouse and distillery fires are typically devastating because
of the flammable alcohol. In 2000, a fire at a Wild Turkey
distillery in Lawrenceburg destroyed a seven-story warehouse that
held nearly 1 million gallons of aging bourbon in 17,200 barrels.
More than 95 percent of the world's bourbon is produced in
Kentucky, where it has been made since the 1780s. More than a
half-dozen distilleries are in the region, including Jim Beam,
Maker's Mark and Wild Turkey.
APTV 08-04-03 2100EDT
warehouse Monday, sending alcohol-fueled flames more than 100 feet
in the air.
The Jim Beam warehouse collapsed about two hours after the fire
was reported at 3 p.m. and continued burning. The company said the
metal-and-wood structure held about 19,000 barrels of bourbon, or
less than 2 percent of its bourbon inventory.
There were no reports of injuries.
Firefighters doused two nearby warehouses with water in an
attempt to save them, while a fire truck stood by at a third.
"Only one of them is on fire and they're working to make sure
that it stays that way and to contain the burning whiskey," said
Larry Green, city administrator.
Bourbon from the warehouse ran off into a nearby creek and
caught fire. Firefighters began to dam up the area, said Fire Chief
Anthony Mattingly.
Emergency officials did not know the fire's cause, but the
company said in a statement from its headquarters in Deerfield,
Ill., that lightning was to blame.
Warehouse and distillery fires are typically devastating because
of the flammable alcohol. In 2000, a fire at a Wild Turkey
distillery in Lawrenceburg destroyed a seven-story warehouse that
held nearly 1 million gallons of aging bourbon in 17,200 barrels.
More than 95 percent of the world's bourbon is produced in
Kentucky, where it has been made since the 1780s. More than a
half-dozen distilleries are in the region, including Jim Beam,
Maker's Mark and Wild Turkey.
APTV 08-04-03 2100EDT
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