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Government rubber factory consumed by flames
Mon 30 Nov 2009,
Jorn, IMNA
A rubber factory in Thanphyuzayart, belonging to the Burmese military government Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation Rubber, ignited and burned to the ground. The factory processed rubber sap from nearby rubber plantations also owned by the government.
On Saturday evening the 28th, around 6 PM according to witnesses, the factory was first seen burning. The factory was close to the local fire station which despite its proximity, according to witness, never responded to the factory blaze. It is not clear how long the building burned for.
No source of the fire has yet been identified, but Thanphyuzayart residents who witnessed the fire confirmed that factory had been completely consumed in the conflagration. The factory sits across the street from a power plant, and is close to the city entrance leading form Mudon and the Thanbphyuzayart market, all of which were reported as undamaged in the blaze.
“During the drying of the rubber flats, fire could have been cause by drops of laung mi [Formic acid],” according to a small private rubber dry factory, “Private factories also easily catch fire because the acid drops to the ground as the rubber dries. The owners make small fires outside the factory to gather smoke. Smoke from the fires goes in to the room to room where the rubber is dries Rubber.”
Rubber is processed in a clean controlled environment using formic acid and water. Once at the desired consistence the rubber is molded and flattened in to thin sheets called “flats”. Theses flats are dried, a processes which results in runoff of water and formic acid.
According to a driver who drives tanker trucks that bring rubber sap to the factory, “Even a small fire can become big. Last year a small fire started at the rubber factory.” The driver explained that all rubber sap from government plantations in Thanphyuzayart is gathered each day, and brought to the factory in one tanker.
The driver said over 1,000 rubber flats were destroyed, but he didn’t know how many had been damaged from fired. One flat of rubber weighs approximately 2 lbs. currently the cost of rubbers is reported to be around 900 kyat per pound.
According to a retired officer of the Myanmar Agriculture Service (MAS) who worked in Thanphyuzayart, the Burmese military government owns approximately 1,300 acres of rubber plantations in Thanphyuzayart. Each acre is able to produce approximately 8 pounds of rubber.
The MAS officer also explained the burnt factory could dry about 600 pounds of rubber per batch, and was able to produce about 5,200 rubber flats per day. Besides the Thanphyuzayart location, the government also owns and operates a rubber factory in Mudon Township.
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