Date: July 2, 2018
Location: Skogn, Levanger (Norway)
Address: Eggenvegen 47, 7608
Type: Potential Dust Fire
Fuel: Grass/Silage
Industry: Dairy Farming (Agriculture)
Equipment: Silo
Name of Farm: Mellom-Eggen
Previous Incidents: None Recorded
Loss: Unknown
Capital Cost: Unknown
Status: Open
Confirmation: Unconfirmed
Business Description:
The Mellom-Eggen farm doesn’t have its own website. According to Innherred, it’s a family farm which overlooks the village of Gråmyra. It has 65 dairy cows and between 50-60 calves. The proprietor of the farm is currently Ann Margot Nørholm; Adresseavisen reported that Nørholm took over the running of the farm from her father, Gunnar Myhr, on January 1 2018. Mellom-Eggen is equipped with a modern fire alarm system.
According to Wikipedia Nørholm’s father, Gunnar Myhr, is an agronomist who graduated from the Mær agricultural school. He is also a politician and is a member of the Higher EU Committee and Nord-Trøndelag Higher County Council. He began dairy farming at Mellom-Eggen in 1973.
Description of Grass Silo Fire
On July 2, Innherred reported that a fire had broken out in a farm silo in Levanger, Norway. The fire service was alerted at 11.05 am, when smoke was seen coming from a silo on Mellon-Eggen farm in Skogn.
The owner and manager of the farm said that she noticed smoke coming from the silo, and that the smoke alert in the barn had triggered. It appeared that smoke had built up in the pipe that runs between the silo and the feeding center. There were concerns that the fire might spread to the barn and the animals were immediately removed from the barn as a safety precaution.
The fire department removed the pipes into the silo to investigate further. The situation was thought to be under control, but there were fears that it could develop into a full fire in the silo.
The farm’s owner and manager told Adresseavisen that the farm has a modern fire alarm system which should provide the location of any fire. It indicated that the fire was in the barn, however it appeared the system had actually detected smoke originating from the silo.
“The grass is exceptionally dry this year,” said the farm’s owner, adding that the incident had been a “serious warming.”
Police and ambulances were also called to the site, but no injuries were reported. The fire is thought to be an accident, arising as a result of the exceptionally hot and dry weather.
The fire came at a time where fire crews were already under pressure due to a much larger fire in the centre of Levanger. In a separate article, Adresseavisen reported that a large wooden building, dating from 1897 and divided into separate apartments, caught fire earlier on the same day at around 7:30 am. The fire was thought to be under control but flared up again at 2 pm. On July 5, Norway Today reported that an asylum seeker had confessed to deliberately starting the fire. At least 25 residents were evacuated from their homes.
Sources:
Innherred
Adresseavisen (silo fire)
Wikipedia (Gunnar Myhr)
Adresseavisen (fire in townhouse)
Norway Today
