An early-morning fire Tuesday destroyed a Winlock warehouse full of food items and contaminated a nearby creek with oil.
State Department of Ecology crews responded to the fire Tuesday after an unknown amount of oil — likely vegetable oil products — leaked into storm drains and reached Olequa Creek.
“It looks like salad dressing in the creek there is so much oil,” said Chase Gallagher, southwest region communications manager for Ecology.
Gallagher said 5 to 7 miles of the creek downstream of the spill is a “100 percent kill zone” for fish and other aquatic life.
Investigators are still not positive of the type and amount of oil spilled into the creek, but learned Tuesday that the warehouse recently took delivery of a shipment of half a semi-trailer load of products including vegetable shortening and vegetable oil, Gallagher said.
“That is extremely likely that is what’s in the creek,” he said.
Fire crews worked through the night Tuesday putting out hotspots, Gallagher said.
The fire’s cause is under investigation, said fire investigator Sgt. Sam Patrick of the Toledo Police Department.
Patrick said Wednesday that he planned to work with insurance investigators to determine the cause of the fire. He estimated the fire caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage to the building and the goods inside it.
The fire was reported at 2:25 a.m. Tuesday at Olympic Trading Corporation at 803 NW Kerron Avenue in Winlock, according to 911 call log information.
Ecology crews responded at 4:30 a.m., Gallagher said.
Firefighters notified Ecology after the oil began seeping into storm drains that drain into Olequa Creek. Firefighters put sandbags around the storm drains in an effort to stop the contamination, Unger said.
Ecology hired a contractor to begin cleaning up the spill. They are using vacuum trucks and absorbent pads to soak up the oil, Unger said.
On Tuesday afternoon the creek suffered another influx of oil after containment measures at a storm drain were overwhelmed, Gallagher said.
Unger said area residents should be prepared to find dead fish in the creek.
“When oil gets in the water it can impact the aquatic life in a couple of different ways,” she said, explaining that fish have trouble breathing when they are covered in oil. The oil in the water, and the food products also spilled during the fire, add nutrients for bacteria in the water. This can lead to lower dissolved oxygen levels in the water, which will also suffocate the fish.
“Basically you can either vacuum it up or absorb it up,” she said. “You try to vacuum the majority of it.”
Contrary to initial reports, Unger said firefighting foam was not mixed with the oil that spilled into the creek. The foamy appearance of the oil is caused by it mixing with water in the fast-moving current.
The building’s owner is out of town, Unger said, but will be billed for the contractor’s work.
