Historic northern Ont. plywood mill committed to restarting operations after devastating fire
CTV
Hundreds of northern Ontario mill workers and their families are on pins and needles after Cochrane's biggest employer went up in flames.
Hundreds of northern Ontario mill workers and their families are on pins and needles after Cochrane's biggest employer went up in flames.
Fire Chief Richard Vallee said he was camping about 10 minutes away when he saw a big plume of smoke coming from the Rockshield Engineered Plywood Plant on Boisvert Crescent on Friday night.
Vallee said the mill was in full production when the fire broke out shortly before 7 p.m. in the "back house" where sawdust is kept.
Crews were able "to keep the main fire to the pond and chip pile area and to areas of the roof for the most part," Mayor Peter Politis said in a news release Monday.
Several people reported hearing what they described as an "explosion," but he said the cause is still under investigation.
Cochrane's volunteer fire brigade rushed in to help. And through an agreement with nearby communities in the Cochrane District, they were able to enlist the help of volunteer firefighters from Iroquois Falls and Kapuskasing.
Expedition Helicopters pitched in with a 180-gallon bucket that scooped up water from nearby Commando Lake and dropped it on the fire.
