PITTSFIELD — Fire crews from several area towns battled a stubborn, smoky fire Sunday in the roof rafters of a building at Hancock Lumber at the Pittsfield Industrial Park on Route 100.
The fire was reported just around 11 a.m., inside the building where raw logs are sawed and milled into finished building products.
There were no injuries, according to a Somerset County dispatcher.
Charles Woodard, a firefighter with Detroit Fire and Rescue, said the fire was in a building that was not visible from the road. Large, long rows of pine logs are stacked up on three sides of the main buildings, ready to be milled.
Woodard said firefighters from Detroit, Canaan, Newport, Skowhegan, Hartland, Burnham and Pittsfield all responded to the blaze.
Pittsfield Fire Chief Bernard Williams was not immediately available for comment on the fire Sunday. The cause of and extent of damage from the fire were not released Sunday. No one from company offices was available for details.
The business was closed on Sunday, but several employees milled about the entrance gate having arrived when they heard the place was on fire. One woman, who declined to be identified, said a total of 59 people work at the Pittsfield branch of Hancock Lumber, which has other retail and service locations in Maine.
The largest manufacturer of Eastern white pine, Hancock Lumber operates three sawmills in Maine in Bethel, Casco and Pittsfield, and distributes its world-class pine boards in Maine, North America and around the globe, according to the company’s website.
“This is a really great place to work and I want to see it stay standing,” said Hancock employee Troy Manson.
Doug Harlow — 612-2367
Twitter:@Doug_Harlow
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