NSW fire fighters have revealed critical information about the cause of a fire incident that killed two people in a Hunter Valley winery in 2008.
About 9am on 17 January 2008, Drayton’s winery went up in flames after a tank containing SVR – an ethanol-based product used in fermented wine – exploded. Two people; including contractor Edgar Ongo and winemaker Trevor Drayton, were reported dead at the scene.
The explosion was thought to have occurred after Ongo welded a metal plate to the tank, believing it was empty.
According to The Daily Telegraph, veteran fire fighter Darren Brown, gave evidence this week in East Maitland Coroners Court, saying that a thermal imaging camera recorded temperatures on the ruptured tank of 700C as debris from the roof above, which had been blown off, continued to burn around it.
NSW Fire Brigade Inspector Brett Crotty, told the court that the winery’s management had been unaware that the tanks contained ethanol or other flammable chemicals because the only plan or manifest was in locked in an office cut off by flames.
The inquest before Deputy State Coroner Hugh Dillon continues.
Image: abc.net.au