Otter Tail Power company officials are assessing the damage after a fire at the Coyote Station power plant near Beulah.
The fire was reported at about 5 AM Thursday. The 427-megawatt plant suffered what Otter Tail called a "major mechanical failure" in one of the boilers. Oil lines ruptured -- and the oil caught fire. Fire departments from Beulah and Hazen responded.
Otter Tail’s Cris Oehler says there is damage to some auxiliary equipment, as well as to the roof of the building.
"We're making preparations to return the plant to service, at reduced load," said Oehler. "We don't know when that will be."
Oehler says Otter Tail is trying to determine what caused the boiler to fail. She says Otter Tail customers won’t notice that the plant is off-line – because of the integrated power grid.
"All of our customers are being served," Oehler said. "None of our customers would have noticed that Coyote was down."
As to any dollar estimates of damage – Oehler says that’s still being looked at. She says the main thing is – no one was hurt.
Otter Tail manages the plant on behalf of itself and the other owners -- including Montana Dakota Utilities, Northern Municipal Power Agency and NorthWestern Energy.