Air compressor explosion at Hormel Foods production facility in Beloit, Wisconsin, causes estimated US$50,000 in damage; no injuries reported

Cindy Allen

BELOIT, Wisconsin , August 19, 2011 (Associated Press) – Beloit fire officials say an air compressor exploded at a Hormel Foods Corp. production facility, leading to a fire that caused an estimated $50,000 in damage. No injuries were reported.

The fire department says the incident was reported Thursday about 3 p.m. Firefighters arrived to see smoke coming from the rear of the building and the food-processing plant being evacuated.

Fire officials say the air compressor exploded in a boiler room, causing a fire that was extinguished in about 15 minutes.

In a statement the fire department says the lesson learned is that fire-extinguisher training in the work place is valuable -- "it saved a large-value property."

A message left at Hormel's headquarters Friday was not immediately returned.

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