Rocket catches fire at chemical depot

HERMISTON, Ore. (AP) — The destruction of rockets at the Umatilla Chemical Depot was stopped Wednesday because of a fire in one of the facility's explosive containment rooms, depot officials said.

The fire started after a rocket had been drained of its chemical agent and was being cut into pieces for burning. As with three similar fires in April and May, the fire happened during the fifth of seven cuts.

There were no injuries and the fire was out in two minutes. There was little damage.

"This fire appears to be similar to the others we've experienced at Umatilla," site manager Don Barclay said in a statement.

No specific cause for the fires has been determined, but the investigation remains active, he said. Roughly 20,000 chemical rockets had been destroyed since the last fire.

Rocket processing will resume Thursday, though not in the containment room where the fire occurred.

The depot contains about 12 percent of the national stockpile of weapons containing nerve and mustard gas. It is expected to take years to destroy the rockets, bombs, artillery shells and other chemical weapons at the depot. The United States is obligated to do so because of a treaty.