Firefighters Extinguish Wood Mulch Fire

By Andrew Gorosko

More than 25 firefighters from Sandy Hook and Botsford responded to a report of a wood mulch fire early Monday at a wood mulch company located at the intersection of Route 34 and Toddy Hill Road in Sandy Hook.

Sandy Hook firefighters received the call at 4:22 am and Botsford firefighters were dispatched to the scene at 4:50 am.

JF Walsh, Inc, whose street address is 4 Toddy Hill Road, has a large yard at the site where the firm mulches wood and then stockpiles it.

Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company Chief Bill Halstead said he expects that the fire was caused by spontaneous combustion. Chief Halstead is the town fire marshal.

When the organic materials in wood mulch decompose, the resulting chemical reaction generates heat that can cause spontaneous combustion in the substance.

The mulch pile had been at the site for only a few weeks, he noted.

When firefighters arrived at the scene in a light rain, flames were apparent atop the burning mulch pile, Chief Halstead said. After digging into the mulch pile, firefighters spotted a smoldering fire within it.

Because the burning area is surrounded by mulch, which is the fuel for the fire, it is time-consuming to put out such fires, he said. It took about three hours to extinguish the fire, which was deep within the mulch pile, he said.

Firefighters used about 6,000 gallons of water and about 30 gallons of firefighting foam concentrate in fighting the blaze, he said. There were no injuries.

Also, workers at the mulch yard used earth-moving equipment to separate the smoldering materials in working to extinguish the fire.

The fire was more than 200 square feet in area and its location within the mulch pile made it time-consuming to extinguish, he said.

Botsford firefighters used a fire hydrant on the nearby Turnberry Lane to fill a fire tanker that then ferried water to the fire, Chief Halstead said.