By ROBIN SHANNON

L’Observateur

GRAMERCY – Authorities in St. James Parish say lightning is the likely cause of a fire Wednesday night at a carbon petroleum plant in Gramercy, but officials with the State Fire Marshals Office said Thursday that the blaze is still under investigation.

The fire broke out around 7:40 p.m. Wednesday at the Rain CII plant on River Road near the Veterans Memorial Bridge. The fire burned through the roof of a storage dome containing calcined petroleum coke. The roof collapsed, but the fire did not seriously affect the material stored inside.  

St. James Parish President Timmy Roussel said volunteer fire departments from St. James and St. John the Baptist parishes responded to the scene, and the fire was under control by about 10 p.m. Wednesday. Roussel said there were no injuries at the plant or among emergency responders as a result of the fire.

Firefighters continued to spray the site with water Thursday trying to snuff out smoldering hot spots. Fire officials said firefighters needed to draw water from the Mississippi River to have enough to finally extinguish the blaze. A few passing storms Thursday also helped quash some of the remaining hotspots.

Roussel said lightning from passing thunderstorms Wednesday night could have ignited the blaze. He said witnesses at the plant recalled seeing one line of fire running from the bottom of the storage unit to the top of the unit’s wooden roof.

“We’re not sure but it appeared that the fire line ran along a conduit up to the wooden roof of the unit setting the entire roof on fire,” Roussel said. “Once the roof collapsed, there was a concern that it would burn the material inside, but the fire did not get hot enough.”

Roussel said calcined coke, a product used in the aluminum smelting process, is not hazardous and burning it posed no health threat to anyone in the area. He said River Road near the facility remains closed as firefighters and company officials ensure the structure is secure.

“There is a transfer house at the top of the structure, which connects conveyor belts that run to a terminal along the river,” Roussel said. “It started to collapse toward the River Road, but now it’s sitting on top the coke. Nothing ended up on the road, but it will remain closed until the fire is completely out and the structure is removed.”

The burned dome is one of two at the Rain CII plant in Gramercy, which currently employs 28 people. A release from the company said representatives were sent to the scene to assess the damage and ensure the safety of employees and surrounding communities. It is not clear when the plant will resume operations.

According to the company’s website, the Gramercy plant was commissioned in 1972 and was originally part of a facility owned by Kaiser Aluminum. The plant converts coke into calcined petroleum coke, which is used in the production of aluminum and titanium oxide. The plant is one of four in Louisiana owned by Rain CII and one of two in the River Parishes. A similar facility is in Norco.

The Gramercy plant is adjacent to the Noranda Alumina LLC refinery, which converts bauxite ore into alumina – a precursor to and the principal raw material for aluminum. St. James Parish spokesperson Melissa Wilkins said the close proximity of the two plants led some to believe last night that it was Noranda that was on fire.

St. James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin said River Road from Louisiana Highway 3213 to the St. John Parish line will likely remain closed for the next couple days as authorities work to secure the site.