Battery Fire At Power Plant Kept Milford Firefighters Busy

MILFORD, CT — A battery fire at the NRG, The Devon Power LLC at 734 Naugatuck Ave. kept Milford firefighters very busy on Wednesday afternoon.

At 2:53 p.m. firefighters responded to the power plant for a report of a bank of batteries on fire. Crews arrived to find a large amount of black smoke venting from the upper windows of the plant and were directed to the rear near the Housatonic River, officials said.

They found a "bank of 40, 3.1 volt lead acid batteries burning with flames near 15-20 feet high. There was a delay in securing a positive water supply due to a frozen fire hydrant due to the extreme cold weather."

Crews used a large industrial dry chemical fire extinguisher, which knocked down the bulk of the fire. A large diameter hand line was stretched to the area for exposures inside the building. Crews were kept out for safety until the power to the units was disconnected by a plant electrician.

"High voltage in the area was nearly 14,000 volts and once confirmed crews damned drains and contained the hydrochloric acid that spilled as a result of the burning batteries. Luckily there was no external contamination of the nearby Housatonic River and the situation was under control," Battalion Chief Thomas A. Thornberg said.

"Crews had to go through gross decontamination and the waste water was tested and contained to a self contained storage tank for removal by a private contractor. We worked closely with DEEP and contacted the USCG to make sure there was no environmental impact," Thornberg added.