Grain bin collapse sends about 10,000 tons of corn onto highway

NEW CARLISLE, OH (AP) - A grain bin collapse sent about 10,000 tons of corn onto an Ohio highway, shutting it down for days.

Emergency crews first responded to calls of an explosion at the Miami Valley Feed & Grain Co. in New Carlisle late Sunday night. The facility is located 17 miles northeast of Dayton, OH.

New Carlisle Fire Chief Steve Trusty says the explosion sound was likely caused by the transformers blowing. “We believe this was a collapse of the structure” said Chief Trusty. The “swoosh” was the sound of nearly 200 truckloads of corn spilling out onto 571 and across the property.

“We are looking at one complete structure failure and one half structure failure” said Chief Trusty in a news conference.

The Jan. 21 collapse also damaged another building. The company says no employees were in the area at the time and no injuries were reported.

The collapse and resulting corn spill damaged two other buildings and caused several power lines and poles to fall down. Power was lost but restored fairly quickly. No employees were present at the facility at the time and no injuries have been reported.

All of the other silos at the grain elevator are full. The silo that collapsed was built in the 1950s or 1960s, according to the New Carlisle News.

Officials estimate the corn to be worth well over $1 million. An investigation into the collapse is ongoing.