STRONG – Approximately 50 firefighters responded to a sawdust fire at the Lignetics Mill on Norton Hill Road Thursday afternoon, Fire Chief Duayne Boyd reported.
Crews from Strong and mutual aid partners were dispatched around 1:40 p.m. to a fire in the storage area behind the mill. Sparks from the smokestack ignited the piles of sawdust, and the wind caused the fire to spread rapidly. Boyd was told by mill personnel that it took about seven minutes for the sawdust to be fully-involved.
Additional manpower was requested throughout the afternoon and evening to relieve firefighters on the scene, due to the heat of the fire and the hot afternoon. Thunderstorms and heavy rain passed north and east of the town, missing the scene of the fire.
A bucket loader from the mill and an excavator from Vining’s were used to dig out the sawdust and allow firefighters to continue extinguishing the fire.
The incident used so much water that Boyd was in contact with the water department because they were significantly lowering the water reservoir.
Strong Fire cleared the scene around 10:30 p.m., Boyd said. He checked the scene again Friday morning and found some lingering hot spots, but said personnel from the mill were handling them at the time.
There were no injuries, Boyd said. The structure of the steel storage building seemed to be intact, but the roofing and part of the siding was badly warped due to the excessive heat.
Lignetics produces wood pellets for pellet-burning stoves, along with other pellet products such as animal bedding materials. The mill in Strong is one of many across the country.
NorthStar EMS was on scene for support and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office provided traffic control, allowing crews to focus on the fire. Franklin County Dispatch assisted with communications.
Responding fire departments included Strong, Farmington, Wilton, New Sharon, Temple, Industry, New Portland, New Vineyard, Kingfield, Phillips, Salem, and Rangeley.
