An employee was injured in a fire at a northwest Iowa motorcycle plant last night. Spirit Lake Fire Chief Pat Daly says the initial call — about an explosion at the Polaris Industries plant — came in around 9:30 p.m.
“An explosion in the paint kitchen and there were multiple alarms that followed,” Daly says, “so when we got on the scene we did have a small fire in the paint kitchen, which we extinguished.”
Fire fighters were on the scene for about two hours. Investigators haven’t determined the exact cause of the explosion yet.
“We did contact DNR because some of the paint did come onto the ground outside, so they’re going to be looking at it to see what to do with the spill,” Daly says.
A spokesman for the company that owns the plant says the injured employee was treated and released from a local hospital.
About 500 people work at the Polaris Industries Plant in Spirit Lake where “Indian” motorcycles are assembled. The first motorized bicycle under the Indian brand was sold in 1902.
(By Matt McWilliams, KICD, Spencer)