Westclox Factory Fire Comes to an End
By: Kim Behrens
Updated: January 6, 2012
PERU--A New Year's Day fire that ravaged the city's former Westclox Clock Factory is finally out.
Firefighters worked from 12pm Thursday till four Friday morning to tackle the final hotspots.
The fire broke out shortly after the new year began.
It took crews several days and three million gallons of water to extinguish the massive blaze.
Teams managed to keep flames contained to the factory's warehouse.
It was used to store recycled materials.
Peru's Fire Chief Jeff King says the products were packed so tight, they erupted in flames.
The warehouse is a total loss.
But King says he didn't want to put the firefighters at risk, so they worked from the outside in.
"We got literally 200,000 square feet of garbage underneath a roof. What's the risk of putting a firefighter in that? Rather protect our exposures and commit the building. So we worked on saving the businesses that we could and houses that we could," explained King.
A timeline has not been set for the warehouse clean up.
It's estimated to cost about $500,000 dollars.
