A fire at Continental Carbon that at one point produced 40-foot flames was extinguished before doing any damage to the building infrastructure or equipment at the plant on Monday night.
Ponca City Fire Chief Butch Herring said that the fire was outside Ponca City limits, falling under the Ranch Drive Volunteer Fire Department jurisdiction. The fire was reported somewhere around 7:45 p.m. with Ponca City fire personnel arriving on the scene at around 7:54 p.m. The fire was declared totally controlled at 10 p.m. In addition to units from Ponca City and Ranch Drive, tankers from the Osage Cove and McCord volunteer fire departments also provided water supply supports to fight the blaze.
The fire was contained to wood and plastic pallets in an outside storage area of the plant. He said that crews noted a large plume of black smoke and large columns of flames while responding to the call for mutual aid. No cause of the fire has been released. Foam fire suppressant was then used to extinguish the fire and all of the foam from one of the firetrucks was used in the battle. Foams from a second truck was used to ensure that the fire remained out.
