K&S : Mine rescue brigade extinguishes smoldering fire

20 October 2016

Herfa-Neurode underground waste disposal site

The Werra plant's mine rescue brigade contained a smoldering fire in the Herfa-Neurode underground waste disposal site, which had been detected at an early stage by the security system installed there. At no point were employees in any danger. There was also no danger to the population.

Today at about 08:45 CET, increasing CO values were registered by safety sensors in the deposit area of the Herfa-Neurode underground waste disposal site (district of Hersfeld-Rotenburg), and a smell of burning was detected by supervisory personnel. In accordance with the existing safety concept, the area was immediately sealed off and the air supply interrupted.

The mine rescue brigade scouted the area and discovered a smoldering fire at waste containers deposited there (big bags). The storage chamber was hermetically closed in order to halt the supply of oxygen.

The authorities were immediately informed about the incident. No harmful substances were released into the environment.

Specialists from the waste disposal site and supervisory authority experts are examining the possible cause of the incipient fire. No result is as yet forthcoming.

About K+S KALI GmbH

K+S KALI GmbH based in Kassel extracts crude salts containing potassium, magnesium and sulphur from its six mines in Germany. These are used to produce a wide range of fertiliser specialties and preliminary products for many different technical, industrial and pharmaceutical applications. K+S KALI GmbH is one of the world's leading suppliers of potash and magnesium products. The company belonging to the K+S Group employs about 8,000 people.

You can find further information about K+S KALI GmbH on the company website at www.kali-gmbh.com

About K+S Entsorgung GmbH / Herfa-Neurode underground waste disposal site

With its registered office in Kassel, Germany, K+S Entsorgung GmbH is a wholly owned subsidiary of the raw materials producer K+S. As a pioneer in underground waste management and leading provider in Europe, the Company operates two underground waste disposal sites and five underground reutilisation plants. Chambers in salt and potash mines are used for this purpose, which are separated from ongoing extraction operations. The waste is disposed of in a way that is maintenance-free and save in the long-term or reutilised as backfill building materials.
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The Herfa-Neurode underground waste disposal site was set up in 1972 and makes use of former excavations of the Wintershall potash mine (today the Hattorf/Wintershall mining area of the Werra plant). The waste disposal area lies about 750 meters below ground and is closed off from ongoing mining operations.

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