Fire at Military Shell Casings Plant Hurts 24

COACHELLA, Calif. — A flash fire erupted at a plant making shell casings for military projectiles here Wednesday morning, injuring 24 employees, three of them critically.

Coachella fire officials said the fire flashed out of a pre-drying oven in one of 10 buildings at the 40-acre Armtec Defense Products complex and swept across a work area at 6:30 a.m. There was no actual explosion and no gunpowder or other explosives were on the site, officials said.

Although the fire itself lasted only 30 seconds, it reached temperatures up to 1,500 degrees, said Bill Vargas, fire prevention officer for the Coachella Fire Department.

10 Admitted to Hospitals

He said some workers were injured running into the building to help the initial victims. Ten were admitted to Indio and Coachella area hospitals for treatment of smoke inhalation, and 11 others were treated at the scene for minor injuries and the effects of smoke.

By Wednesday afternoon, most had been released.

The three severely burned workers were flown to San Bernardino County Medical Center’s burn ward where by Wednesday evening, Monica Grijola, 34, and Zulema Quintero, 23, remained on the critical list. Cedrick Mareno, 20, had improved slightly, but was still in serious condition.

Howard C. Appleman, Armtec president, said the fire was in an oven used to pre-dry moldings for 120-millimeter shell casings and that it was quickly doused by the internal sprinkling system.

The building, whose interior walls were charred, was filled with yellow nitrous-oxide smoke created by the burning moldings of nitrocellulose and paper.

Inspected Last Week

Coachella Fire Chief John Rios said the company, which employs about 400 people, was inspected last week and “met all of our fire and safety requirements.”

“We’ve never had a serious accident with injuries before this,” Appleman said. “And we’ve never had a citation or warning of any kind.”

Armtec, which primarily does contract work for the U.S. government, is an 18-year-old complex along Avenue 53 between Highway 86 and Highway 111 about five miles east of Indio.