Jim Beam Bourbon Pours Into Kentucky River After Blaze Destroys

By The Associated Press 4 hours ago weather.com

Kentucky Warehouse Full of Jim Beam Bourbon Barrels Burns

Meteorologist Ari Sarsalari follows a path of storms which may have sparked the fire leading to the destruction of the warehouse.

At a Glance

> A fire destroyed a massive Jim Beam rickhouse filled with about 45,000 barrels of aging bourbon in Versailles, Kentucky.

> Thousands of gallons of bourbon subsequently poured into the Kentucky River.

> State officials are worried the runoff could lead to a massive fish die-off.

A fire that destroyed a massive Jim Beam rickhouse filled with about 45,000 barrels of aging bourbon in Kentucky has sent runoff into nearby waterways, which has state officials worried about a massive fish die-off Firefighters from four counties responded to the blaze that erupted late Tuesday. It sent flames shooting into the night sky and generated so much heat that firetruck lights melted.

Lightning might have been a factor, but fire investigators haven't been able to start looking for the cause, Woodford County Emergency Management Director Drew Chandler said.

The warehouse, called a rickhouse, was a total loss. Looking to reassure consumers of Jim Beam bourbon, Beam Suntory indicated it amounted to a drop of the iconic brand's total aging inventory.

No injuries were reported, Chandler said. The fire was contained but was allowed to burn until midday Wednesday, he said.

"The longer it burns, the more of the distilled spirits burn with it," he said in a phone interview. "So when they go to put it out, there will be less contaminated runoff that goes into a drinking-water tributary."

By Wednesday afternoon, firefighters were dousing the warehouse's charred remains with water to try to extinguish the fire, Chandler said. As they kept working, the focus turned to the environmental impact of the leaking bourbon. The distiller hired an emergency cleanup crew and state environmental officials were coordinating efforts to control bourbon runoff into a nearby creek that flows into the Kentucky River, said John Mura, a spokesman for the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet.

"We do know there has been runoff enter the creek," Mura said. "And it has made its way into the Kentucky River."

The runoff could have a "serious impact on aquatic life," he said. Runoff is expected to create "low dissolved oxygen levels," which could result in substantial fish kills, the agency said in a release.

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Poster Comment:

I'm drowning in a whiskey river....

We were working a concert at Medusa's in Chicago. It was a juice bar on Sheffield about a mile south of Wrigley Field.

I was walking the line. This kid had a pop bottle and was trying to hide it behind his leg. I said, "Let me see that." I unscrewed the cap and smelled it. It was straight Jack. I said, "No, you can't have this." LOL