Massive fire destroys parts of Palmyra lumber yard; no injuries reported
Much of the office area, mercantile area and lumber area is considered a total loss, according to officials.
SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): A massive fire broke out at a lumber yard in the Village of Palmyra overnight into Tuesday.
The fire was called in around midnight at A.J. Anich Lumber Yard and Pal Steel, and had flames reaching up to 40 feet.
'During our fire, we actually depleted our water system here,' said Palmyra Fire Rescue Deputy Chief Dylan Callas. 'We drained our water tower down to its crucial limits.'
Officials said an off-duty police officer saw the fire when they were returning home from their shift and called it in, alerting Palmyra Police Chief Paul Blount soon after.
'He said, 'Hey, you know, it's a pretty significant fire,' and told me the location,' Blount said. 'That was that 'uh oh' moment where you just know that there's going to be a big situation and a big emergency in your small community.'
Crews were on scene about 10 minutes later, and more than 30 agencies helped to control the fire.
'You could see it from a few blocks away,' said Alexander Beaver, a Palmyra resident.
Beaver lives down the road from the fire and was one of the first people on the scene.
'You could just hear everything crashing, the crackling from everything burning down,' said Beaver. 'This has been a staple of our community for as long as I can remember. My grandpa worked here and [it's] sad to see.'
Firefighters were still working at the scene late Tuesday morning. Crews are anticipated to be at the scene most of the day.
No injuries were reported.
The facility covers multiple city blocks. Much of the office area, mercantile area and lumber area is considered a total loss, according to officials.
'Our crews worked professionally efficient,' said Callas. 'They worked as fast as humanly possible, and the outcome is, is that you can see in the back that there is still standing structure back there.'
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Courtesy: www.wkow.com