SHELDON, IOWA, US — A fire at Kent Nutrition’s feed mill in Sheldon, Iowa, on Dec. 7 damaged a feed pellet machine, an exhaust system and several pallets of paper, according to the Sheldon Fire Department.

Sheldon Fire Chief Brad Hindt in a statement on the department’s Facebook page said when firefighters arrived at the plant around 8 p.m., they found the building filled with moderate smoke, hot embers and heavy smoke exiting the outside exhaust pipe. Hindt said employees were using fire extinguishers to try to put out the fire and the sprinkler system was operating.

He said firefighters found that the source of the fire was a pellet machine on the second floor and used water and foam to put out the fire. They also put out a fire in the exhaust system.

He said firefighters and Kent employees took apart the pellet machine and exhaust system and removed the burnt feed pellets from the cooling bin. Hindt said the cause of the fire is undetermined.

He said 29 firefighters responded to the fire and were on the scene for 3½ hours.

The feed mill was built in 2017 on Kent Nutrition’s Deluxe Feeds campus in Sheldon.