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Fire breaks out at old Lone Star plant
  
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No injuries reported and cause of blaze remains unknown
By Francesca Olsen
A fully involved structure fire broke out at 8:12 a.m near a building that once was part of the Lone Star Cement Plant on Route 23B in Greenport Friday. The cause of the blaze is still unknown.
The fire was reported to be out at 10:58 a.m. on Friday, but firefighters stayed on the scene until about 2:40 p.m. An excavator was brought to the scene for overhauling.
State Police Chief Investigator Gary Mazzacano said that, at this time, he believes the fire started from a large turbine grinder on the scene which was used by Seward Valley Farms, out of Cobleskill, NY, to grind wood into mulch and horse bedding. Piles of sawdust and wood scraps surround the concrete and wood building where the fire took place.
Mazzacano said that three employees of Seward worked late Thursday night, slept in their trucks, and at around 7:30 a.m. Friday, started work by unloading a truck. The employees noticed smoke and fire near the grinding machine and tried to extinguish it with a garden hose.
“I think a passerby actually called 911,” Mazzacano said.
All three Greenport fire stations responded, as well as two engines from the Claverack Fire Department and a tower truck from Hudson. Units from Livingston, Stottville and Germantown were standing by.
Firefighters found the fire around the grinder and it had also extended to the roof of the building. The machinery was damaged, as well as the building’s roof and a wooden trailer inside the building. No one was injured.
Mazzacano said investigators hadn’t concluded what started the fire, but that it was certain the fire started in debris near the grinding machine. The building will be fine, thanks to its concrete and steel makeup, he said. No electrical damage occurred because the building is powered by a generator.
“We don’t feel it is a suspicious fire, from the standpoint of someone deliberately setting it,” Mazzacano said. “We got in there, and put a good stop on it ... it had the potential of being a lot worse.”
There were between 8,000 and 10,000 tons of sawdust at the site and a lot of cleanup and overhaul was necessary to make sure no pockets of smoldering hot spots were left in the sawdust.
“Luckily, it was only some small pockets of sawdust that were involved in the fire,” Mazzacano said. An excavator from Turner Excavating in Livingston was brought in to do the work.
To reach reporter Francesca Olsen, call 518-828-1616, ext. 2272 or e-mail folsen@registerstar.com.
The fire was reported to be out at 10:58 a.m. on Friday, but firefighters stayed on the scene until about 2:40 p.m. An excavator was brought to the scene for overhauling.
State Police Chief Investigator Gary Mazzacano said that, at this time, he believes the fire started from a large turbine grinder on the scene which was used by Seward Valley Farms, out of Cobleskill, NY, to grind wood into mulch and horse bedding. Piles of sawdust and wood scraps surround the concrete and wood building where the fire took place.
Mazzacano said that three employees of Seward worked late Thursday night, slept in their trucks, and at around 7:30 a.m. Friday, started work by unloading a truck. The employees noticed smoke and fire near the grinding machine and tried to extinguish it with a garden hose.
“I think a passerby actually called 911,” Mazzacano said.
All three Greenport fire stations responded, as well as two engines from the Claverack Fire Department and a tower truck from Hudson. Units from Livingston, Stottville and Germantown were standing by.
Firefighters found the fire around the grinder and it had also extended to the roof of the building. The machinery was damaged, as well as the building’s roof and a wooden trailer inside the building. No one was injured.
Mazzacano said investigators hadn’t concluded what started the fire, but that it was certain the fire started in debris near the grinding machine. The building will be fine, thanks to its concrete and steel makeup, he said. No electrical damage occurred because the building is powered by a generator.
“We don’t feel it is a suspicious fire, from the standpoint of someone deliberately setting it,” Mazzacano said. “We got in there, and put a good stop on it ... it had the potential of being a lot worse.”
There were between 8,000 and 10,000 tons of sawdust at the site and a lot of cleanup and overhaul was necessary to make sure no pockets of smoldering hot spots were left in the sawdust.
“Luckily, it was only some small pockets of sawdust that were involved in the fire,” Mazzacano said. An excavator from Turner Excavating in Livingston was brought in to do the work.
To reach reporter Francesca Olsen, call 518-828-1616, ext. 2272 or e-mail folsen@registerstar.com.
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