Danger zone after massive blaze

A blaze that destroyed a storage building containing 8000 tonnes of palm kernel extract in Mount Maunganui yesterday caused major disruption as firefighters worked to gain access and smoke billowed across nearby streets.
Road closures were still in place last night as firefighters worked to demolish the 2500sqm J Swap building on the corner of Totara St and Hull Rd.
The fire was out by 6pm yesterday but traffic control staff were in place to stop people getting too close to the scene.
The Tauranga City Council has warned people to stay out of the water at Pilot Bay for at least 24 hours after concerns that a large amount of water run-off could have contaminated the harbour.
Fire Service assistant area commander Graeme Easton said the cause of the fire had yet to be determined and yesterday a crane was brought in and a firefighter in a safety bucket was working from above the roof with gas-powered cutting equipment.
Mr Easton said the demolition work would continue and could take most of today.
At the height of the fire, 50 firefighters were involved in fighting the blaze, which caused the steel structure of the building to collapse and the concrete walls to bow. Many businesses had to close as thick smoke billowed across nearby streets.
Tauranga fire safety officer Ken McKeagg said police inspected the building yesterday before part of the building was demolished, because they did not want any evidence to be destroyed.
He said there was no reason to suspect the blaze was the work of an arsonist at this stage, although it could not be discounted.
Spontaneous ignition and a machinery fault were other factors also being investigated, he said.
Mr McKeagg said because the product kept igniting under the roof, fire crews had to take every precaution as they worked.
The roof trusses were attached to a large firewall and the major concern was it could collapse on to an adjacent building if removed too quickly.
Tauranga City Council pollution prevention officer Toby Barach said health warning signs erected along Pilot Bay were likely to remain in place until lunchtime today as a precaution.
Water run-off from the firefighting entered the harbour via the stormwater system, directly affecting the port area, Mr Barach said. "The contamination was not major but as a precaution we advise people to stay out of the water in Pilot Bay for the next 24 hours."
Mr Barach said because machinery and a loader were inside the fire-ravaged building there was potential for some oils and a few other noxious chemicals to be part of run-off water, but most of the run-off was not seriously toxic given the amount of water used to douse the fire and that would have diluted a lot of it.
Vacuum trucks were helping vacuum up the run-off, but with hydrants pumping out 40 to 50 litres of water a second at the height of the fire it would have needed an army of vacuum trucks to capture all of the run-off, he said. The harbour was cloudy in areas due to the discharge.
Because the tide turned about 12pm yesterday anything further up the harbour would have been flushed away.
J Swap director Stephen Swap told the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend it was the biggest fire in the 70-year history of the bulk haulage company and the replacement cost of the building and plant was likely to cost millions of dollars although the company was insured. He said insurance assessors arrived at the site yesterday and he expected they would work over the weekend.
"I'm gutted, of course, but there is not a lot you can do about it.
"At the end of the day it is only a building and I'm so grateful that no one was inside and no one was hurt."