Fire at Power Plant . . . [3 men rescued, 1 missing]

[Petrushka]

Three men were rescued, from the top of a smoke stack at the American Electric Power Mitchell Plant in Marshall County, W.Va., south of Moundsville. As of midnight, one man was still unaccounted for after a fire inside the smoke stack.

The men were doing construction on the smoke stack, installing a fiberglass lining. The men are contracted workers from Pullman Power.

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The smoke stack is new construction to install "scrubbers", which reduce sulfur dioxide emissions at coal-fired power plants.

http://www.wtov9.com/print/7697924/detail.html

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Note: Early TV reports--before 9 p.m.--indicated that there had been an explosion at the Kammer-Mitchell plant and traffic was stopped on both sides of the Ohio River. The fire is still burning, BTW. (Edited to add that it's now 1:21 a.m. here in Marshall County.)

[Petrushka]

1. More info . . . from the Sunday News-Register, Wheeling WV

Three Rescued From Stack Fire
by John McCabe and Katie Wilson, Staff Writers

MITCHELL PLANT--A rescue helicopter plucked three men off the top of a burning, 976-foot-tall smoke stack at American Electric Power's Mitchell Plant late Saturday, a daring action that ended a nearly three-hour ordeal for the workers.

One worker at the plant remains unaccounted for, however. Neither Marshall County Sheriff John Gruzinskas nor AEP officials would comment on the status of that worker late Saturday. However, a firefighter at the scene said there was one fatality from the fire.

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The rescued men, who are not being named by Marshall County authorities, were saved from their perch with the aid of a basket hanging off the helicopter.

The helicopter worked for about five minutes to remove the men, one at a time. They were taken from the Mitchell Plant to the Marshall County Airport, where additional helicopters were waiting to transport them to a Pittsburgh-area hospital for treatment.

Their injuries are not known. However, the helicopter's pilot said after their pick-up that they were suffering from smoke inhalation but otherwise were in good condoition.

The men were trapped on a catwalk after fire broke out at the plant around 7:30 p.m. Saturday, setting the plant's new smoke stack ablaze. The cause of the fire is not known, and the stack was still burning as of midnight.

The helicopter that rescued the men was based in Cumberland, Md. It made the 50-minute trip to perform the daring rescue.

<snip>
http://www.news-register.net/printPage.asp?articleID=3121

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Also see:

A History of The Double-Flue Stack
compiled by Staff Writers

MOUNDSVILLE--Construction of a one-of-a-kind, 976-foot, double-flue stack at American Electric Power's Kammer-Mitchell Plant screeched to a halt Saturday evening as the structure caught fire.

The construction, which began March 14, 2005, was designed as part of an ongoing project at the facility to install environmental controls aimed at reducing sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide emissions.

The technology was meant to keep the plant in compliance with federal air pollution regulations for years to come, said Plant Manager Wayne Irons at the time the construction began.

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http://www.news-register.net/printPage.asp?articleID=3122

(Edited to correct a couple spelling errors.)

[donsu]

2. why would they withhold the rescued men's names?

nt

[Lochloosa]

3. To notify the missing/dead mans family first.

[Petrushka]

4. Names released by Marshall County Sheriff

County Sheriff: 1 Person Presumed Dead in Fire at Power Plant

Posted: 11:45 am EST March 5, 2006
Updated: 12:14 pm EST March 5, 2006


Marshall County, WV--Marshall County Sheriff John Gruzinskas said Sunday that the fourth and final person trapped in a smokestack fire is presumed dead.

The worker presumed to be dead has been identified as Jerald Talbot, 27, of Marshall County. Gruzinskas says Talbot recently moved to the Ohio Valley with his wife, who is 6 months pregnant, and their two children. Gruzinskas said crews still have not been able to search for Talbot's body because a small fire is still burning inside.

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On Saturday night, three other workers were rescued from the top of the smokestack at the American Electric Power Mitchell Plant in Marshall County, W. Va., south of Moundsville. They have been identified as Timothy Wells, 36, of New Martinsville, W. Va.; Jay McDonald, 59, of Kanab, Utah; and David Early, 29, of New Matamoras, OH. Wells and Early have been treated and released from a Pittsburgh hospital, while McDonald remains in UPMC Presbyterian in stable condition.

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http://www.wtov9.com/news/7712629/detail.html