Health district expands Wilbur-Ellis advisory

GRANT COUNTY — The Grant County Health District announced late Friday that it is expanding its health advisory to two miles around the Wilbur-Ellis facility at Road 1.3 SE and Road O SE, southeast of Moses Lake, which caught fire on Sunday, Oct. 23.

“There are several different agencies on-site monitoring the situation,” said GCHD spokesperson Lexi Smith.

The GCHD is extending the advisory because work crews will begin excavating the smoldering remains of a company fertilizer facility which could stir up particulates and release additional sulfur dioxide and other pollutants into the air, according to a health district press release.

Sulfur dioxide is a colorless gas with a pungent odor and a byproduct of the burning of fertilizers, the press release said, and may irritate eyes, nose and throat, and cause nasal congestion, cough, difficulty breathing, eye irritation and shortness of breath. The GCHD is asking residents within a two-mile radius of the facility to limit outdoor activity and watch their reactions if they are exposed to polluted air.

According to the press release, the GCHD is also asking the public to stay away from the facility and avoid areas around the site where smoke can be smelled.

Jeanne Forbis, vice president of communications for Wilbur-Ellis, said the building was used to store dried fertilizer.

"The cause of the fire is still under investigation," she said.

Based in San Francisco, California, Wilbur-Ellis produces chemicals for use in industry and agriculture and has several sulfur-rich soil supplements labeled for sale and use in Washington State. Neither the GCHD nor the company has said what was stored at the facility that caught on fire, and Wilbur-Ellis has not returned requests for comment.

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached at cfeatherstone@columbiabasinherald.com