Toowoomba firies fight St George cotton gin blaze

FIRE crews remain at the scene of a major fire at a St George cotton gin this morning.

UPDATE: Fire crews are heading home after successfully bringing an all-night fire at a St George cotton gin under control.

EARLIER: Queensland Fire and Rescue Service crews remain at the scene of a major fire at a St George cotton gin this morning.

A QFRS spokeswoman said crews were called to the fire at the cotton gin about 7.30pm Friday.

Nine fire crews, including one unit from Toowoomba, and three senior officers arrived on scene to find the fire well involved and it burnt through the night and was expected to continue to burn for most of today.

The blaze was contained to one 80m long, 30m wide, 15m high shed.

Cotton gin staff helped fire crews fight the blaze and utilised water tanks from the gin and another nearby cotton gin to refill the water tanks of the fire trucks.

Seven fire crews and a senior fire officer remained on scene this morning.

No injuries have been reported and the fire was contained to the shed with fire crews successfully protecting surrounding buildings.

An excavator was being used this morning to drag cotton bales out of the shed before the bales were wet down and extinguished of any flames.

Drums of chemicals also had to be moved to a safe distance.

Fire fighters in breathing apparatus spent hours containing the blaze with water and foam and crews had to be replaced due to fatigue throughout the night.

The cause of the fire was yet to be determined.
 

Originally published as Toowoomba firies fight St George cotton gin blaze