Elevator owners contribute $30,000 to Edgar department

The Edgar Fire and Rescue Squad will be upgrading their equipment with a $30,000 donation received recently from Aurora Cooperative.

In December of 2019, the fire department was called several times to assist with a fire at the company’s elevator located in the northeastern Nuckolls County community of Sedan.

The volunteer fire fighters were first called to the shuttle train loading elevator complex on Dec. 22, when it was discovered a bin full of corn was on fire. The department was called back to the elevator nine more times as the fire stretched over several days and included calls on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day as additional hot spots were discovered when grain was being moved out of the bin.

Of the $30,000 donated to the department, $26,000 has been used to upgrade a 40-year-old air system. The system is used to supply oxygen containers the fire fighters use for protection from smoke while battling a blaze.

The new system includes a 6,000 pound compressor, two-bottle fill stations and a four-bottle cascade system.

Four thousand dollars will be used by the rescue squad.

The cause of the elevator fire was never determined.

The amount of the donation was calculated using a national formula used to value the cost of fire fighting.