Explosion and fire erupt at Quaker Oats plant in Cedar Rapids, Iowa; no injuries

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — An apparent explosion caused a fire Saturday at a Quaker Oats plant in Iowa that the company touts as the largest milling facility in the world. No one was hurt, fire officials said.

The Cedar Rapids Fire Department said firefighters responded to the call at about 4:45 p.m. Video and photos posted to social media showed black smoke over the downtown of the city of about 140,000.

The fire evidently began with an explosion, the department said via Facebook.

All workers got out safely and were accounted for without any injuries, Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell said in a Facebook video.

The fire happened in an area of the building that handled products, O’Donnell said.

“It’s not heavily populated with employees and team members. Which of course in this case was a blessing,” O’Donnell said.

There was no immediate information on what caused the fire.

PepsiCo Foods US said in a statement that fire responders went to the scene of the blaze and how it started would be investigated.

The Quaker Oats brand, by way of the Quaker Mill Company, turns 150 years old in 2027. It is owned by PepsiCo.

The Quaker Oats facility is the largest milling facility in the world, processing over 2 million pounds (900,000 kilograms) of oats daily, according to the company’s website.

The Associated Press