OAKLAND — Two juveniles are facing arson charges after starting a fire at the site of the former Cascade Woolen Mill on Friday.

Police and fire crews were called to Cascade Mill Road at around 3:40 p.m. to investigate a report of smoke coming out of one of the buildings on the site. The mill itself burned five years ago, but several smaller buildings remain, including the tall building the smoke was seen coming from.

The ruins of the former Cascade Woolen Mill in Oakland on Monday. Two boys were charged with arson for starting a fire in an oil drum at the site. The mill on Cascade Mill Road burned in January 2010. Staff photo by David Leaming

The person who called in the fire reported seeing kids running away from the area after the smoke started, according to Oakland Police Captain Rick Stubbert.

Firefighters found a fire smoldering in a 55-gallon drum in one of the buildings and extinguished it. Although the fire was contained to the barrel, it could have spread to other parts of the building, Stubbert said.

“There were other flammable things in there,” he said. “We were lucky to catch it early.”

Two boys on bicycles were caught by Sgt. Tracey Frost and charged with arson, Stubbert said. He did not know the age of the two boys, but they are believed to be from Oakland, Stubbert said. Arson is a class A crime in Maine, a serious felony.

The Cascade Mill burned down in January 2010, but some of the smaller buildings survive. The area isn’t fenced off or secured, but police patrol it, Stubbert said.

This is the second case of arson at the former mill since it burned. A 14-year-old boy from Oakland was charged with arson in 2013 after setting fire in a building that used to house the mill’s boiler room.

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