Fire erupts at French Camp grain facility; smoke visible from Modesto

Firefighters corralled a blaze that broke out Sunday morning at a French Camp Grain Co. pressing facility just east of Interstate 5, producing a thick column of black smoke visible from as far as Modesto.

The fire was first reported at 10:23 a.m. at the facility in the 9500 block of Harlan Road, Battalion Chief John Gish of the French Camp Fire Department told The Stockton Record. He said the fire started in a large warehouse that contained about 52 tons of grain and three tanks with corn oil extracted from the grain.

“It’s flammable but not explosive,” Gish said about the corn oil in the tanks.

Flames had engulfed the warehouse when firefighters first arrived, Gish said. He said there was a flareup from the fire after one of the tanks was compromised by the flames. He said the warehouse appeared to be destroyed by the fire.

The California Highway Patrol reported that the fire burned power lines in the area. Some of the flames moved across nearby railroad tracks and started a grass fire. Harlan Road and South McKinley Avenue were closed while authorities worked on the fire.

San Joaquin County sheriff’s officials said the three oil tanks ruptured, soaking the building. Firefighters from throughout the county were called to help put out the fire, including departments from Lathrop, Manteca, Waterloo Montezuma, Woodbridge, Morada and Ripon.

The Sheriff’s Department asked the public to avoid the area of Harlan Road, which was closed from Lynn Avenue to Transportation Court, and South McKinley Avenue, which was closed from Wyman Road to about 100 yards north of Wyman. Sheriff’s officials said no injuries had been reported.

This story was originally published July 9, 2017 at 1:09 PM with the headline "Fire erupts at French Camp grain facility; smoke visible from Modesto."