Formel’s Auto Salvage Yard Fire Doused by GBFD

Formel Fire

Just after 4:30 PM on Friday, Oct. 21, 2022, the Great Barrington Fire Department was dispatched to Formel’s Auto Salvage on Van Deusenville Road for a report of an outdoor fire possibly involving fuel tanks.

Chief Burger could see a black smoke column from several miles away and requested the first alarm be struck bringing in mutual aid. Fire units arrived on scene and found a pile of approximately 20 vehicles burning along with a few large scrap fuel tanks. No buildings were threatened. Crews worked to stop the fire from spreading to other areas on site including scrap tire piles.

The fire was contained and brought under control in under an hour, however crews remained on scene until after 8:00 PM cooling the smoldering vehicles and containing runoff. The substantial reduction in the volume of vehicles and scrap stored on site over the last several years also aided in isolating the fire to one pile.

The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) was requested and responded to monitor air quality and assess any environmental hazards caused by the fire. There were no air quality issues detected and the DEP verified run off had been contained by fire crews.

Although the fire is not considered suspicious, the State Fire Marshal was requested for the origin and cause investigation.

The Great Barrington Fire Department responded with four engines. Sheffield and Monterey each had a company operating on scene. A tanker task force was also utilized to shuttle water to the scene so as to not further roil the Housatonic water system. That brought in tankers from Richmond, Stockbridge, Lee, Monterey, New Marlborough, Sheffield, and Egremont.

Formel fireGreat Barrington Police set up traffic detours around the scene, while Southern Berkshire Ambulance stood by. There were no injuries. The Fire Department Support Group provided food and water to responders.

Chief Burger stated “I would like to thank all of the various companies and agencies who responded to assist. Their collaborative effort quickly brought the incident under control. They also did an outstanding job identifying and mitigating environmental hazards and not just suppressing the fire.”