Laserfiche WebLink
11/27/2000 14:11 916-255-2220 CIWMB PUBLIC AFFAIRS PAGE 01 <br /> Draft Press Reiease <br /> Attn: Environment Editor <br /> November 29, 2000 Contact: Chris Peck <br /> 00-XXX Lanny Clavecilla <br /> (916) 255-2296 <br /> opa@ciwmb.ca.gov <br /> WASTE BOARD TO EXTINGUISH TRACY TIRE FIRE <br /> TRACY -- After burning for more than two years, the tire fire at the Silas Royster <br /> property in Tracy will finally be extinguished. A contractor for the California Integrated <br /> Waste Management Board will begin fire suppression work early next week. The <br /> Waste Board is one of six boards and departments in the California Environmental <br /> Protection Agency. <br /> The majority of the fire has burned itself out and only a small portion of the site where <br /> the tires were buried the deepest still continues to smolder. Over a three-week period, <br /> remaining hot spots in the tire pile will be put out and ash from the fire will be <br /> consolidated then covered with soil. <br /> The fire suppression effort is being coordinated with the Tracy Fire Department and San <br /> Joaquin County Public Health Services. <br /> Activity on the site will begin on Thursday, November 30 when workers will start hauling <br /> ash. The material will be wetted to keep it from becoming airbome in the process. Fire <br /> suppression efforts are expected to begin in eamest on Tuesday, December 5. An <br /> excavator will pull small amounts of tires from the pile and spread them on the ground <br /> where they can be doused with foam and water. <br /> Workers involved in the suppression effort -- heavy equipment operators, fire fighters <br /> and safety personnel -- will wear protective suits and self-contained breathing apparatus <br /> as a precaution against exposure to carbon monoxide, airborne particulates (ash) and <br /> chemicals suspected in smoke from burning tires. Air quality will be continuously <br /> monitored during the fire suppression activities to ensure worker safety. <br />