45,000 Barrels of Whiskey on Fire at Warehouse, Spills into River

Firefighters were battling to contain a massive blaze Wednesday at a Jim Beam warehouse with 45,000 barrels of bourbon, as crews struggle to contain damaging runoff that has already begun to flow into a nearby creek and the Kentucky River.

Government officials say the runoff - a mixture of whiskey, hose water, barrel residue and charred debris - will potentially lead to a "severe fish kill" as bacteria feast on the alcohol and deplete the water's oxygen supply.

To minimize the impact, officials have advised firefighters at the scene to not blast the flames with water, and instead let the fire burn out, said John Mura, a spokesman for the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet. "Given the extreme heat of this fire, it would not do a lot to put out this fire and would simply carry the bourbon residue a lot further."