Three people injured in ‘high-risk’ explosion, fire at propane distribution centre in RM of Taché

Three people were injured Thursday when a fire broke out at a propane distribution centre in the RM of Taché, triggering an explosion.

Firefighters from the Taché Fire Department responded to the facility, located on Road 42 East, about 47 kilometres east of Winnipeg, at about 3:30 p.m. They arrived to find one building engulfed in flames and learned three workers were inside when an explosion occurred, deputy chief Jason Kroeker said Friday.

“It was a very complex, fast-moving and high-risk incident,” Kroeker said.

“We had tanks that were blowing off within that first hour that, a half-mile away (people) could hear them as clearly as though they were working on site.”

The burning building contained about 100 propane tanks, including two large bulk tanks located nearby. Another 250 tanks were in the immediate area, and more than 2,000 tanks were stored elsewhere on the property.

Paramedics and police arrived on scene around the same time as fire crews. They worked on treating the injured patients and setting up a safe perimeter, as firefighters mounted a defensive attack against the blaze, Kroeker said.

They also staged a landing area for a STARS air ambulance helicopter, which transported one patient to Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre. Another patient was taken to the hospital by ground ambulance, while the third person with injuries was treated on scene and then released, Kroeker said.

All three of the patients suffered non-life-threatening injuries, Manitoba RCMP said.

Kroeker said his fire crews had the blaze under control in about an hour, but remained on site for six hours before heading back to the station to clean up and reset their equipment.

Fire crews from nearby departments in Ste. Anne and Giroux were called in to assist in the response.

“Being a high-risk call, it is always uneasy for everyone working on site because there is always the risk that one tank explodes,” Kroeker said. “But we train for this, we prepare for these types of incidents and crews did a phenomenal job.

He said he could not comment on the cause of the fire, saying that will form part of a larger investigation.

RCMP confirmed Workplace Health and Safety and the Office of Fire Commissioner are reviewing the blaze. Mounties from Steinbach are also investigating.

The main building impacted by the fire will likely be a total loss, Kroeker said.

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca