Jim Beam warehouse filled with 45,000 barrels of bourbon catches fire

Flames and smoke rise from a bourbon warehouse fire at a Jim Beam distillery in Woodford County, Kentucky. Photo / AP

Firefighters are battling a massive blaze on Wednesday (US time) at a Jim Beam warehouse filled with 45,000 barrels of bourbon, an effort they say could extend well into the evening.

Drew Chandler, the emergency management director for Woodford County, told local news station WKYT that lighting might have sparked the fire at one warehouse Tuesday night before spreading to a second storage facility. Crews managed to extinguish one, he said. But the other fire was proving more challenging; a second team was called in to bring in flame-retardant foam and a local business is hauling in sand to limit the runoff from flowing into a nearby creek and the Kentucky River, according to news reports.

Flames and smoke rise from a bourbon warehouse fire. Photo / AP

A standard barrel contains about 53 gallons of bourbon, which is aged for years to achieve its desired colour and flavour. The bourbon gives the flames ample material to burn, Chandler said. Generally, any alcohol that's at least 80 proof - like most bourbon - is flammable.

Chandler told The Louisville Courier Journal that the fire was burning so hot he could feel the heat even standing as much as a football field away, or about 100m. The intense temperatures were keeping the crews from getting close enough, he said.

"We are thankful that no one was injured in this incident, and we are grateful to the courageous firefighters from multiple jurisdictions who brought the fire under control and prevented it from spreading," Jim Beam's parent company, Beam Suntory, said in a statement. "We have a comprehensive warehouse safety programme that includes regular inspections and rigorous protocols to promote safety and the security of our ageing inventory."

The company operates 126 barrel warehouses, which collectively hold 3.3 million barrels, in the state. The warehouse that was destroyed contained relatively young whiskey, Beam Suntory said, the loss of which will not impact availability.

The firefighters at the Jim Beam distillery fire. Photo / AP

A September report by The Courier Journal found that facilities where bourbon-makers age their products can go without independent safety inspections for decades, raising public safety and environmental questions about an industry central to the state's economy. The report documented a series of warehouse collapses and fires, including a lightning-sparked blaze that burned down a Jim Beam facility in 2003.

8+ hours later, the fire continues to burn at this Jim Beam property in Woodford County. Emergency Management officials tell me they expect it to last for several more hours. @LEX18News pic.twitter.com/RHqJrQ36xd

— Alex Valverde (@AlexValverdeTV) July 3, 2019

In 2010, the state adopted new structural requirements for bourbon warehouses. The rules include mandatory fire suppression systems in new facilities taller than five stories. But older warehouses are not required to update their buildings, according to the report.

In the past year, bourbon distillers have also had to contend with the economic consequences of President Donald Trump's trade war. US whiskey exports slowed during the second half of 2018, after trading partners including the European Union enacted retaliatory tariffs of up to 25%, raising the cost of American-made whiskey, which includes bourbon. Sales fell by 11% from July to December last year, compared with the same period in 2017, according to data compiled by the Distilled Spirits Council.