PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — An explosion at a paper mill at Maine shook the base Wednesday and produced a plume of dim smoke that was visible because miles around, besides it appeared none was injured.
The blast rocked the Androscoggin mill at Jay, at central Maine, almost noon, land police spokesman Steve McCausland said. mill personnel told police none was injured, though some crowd suffered respiratory distress.
A rising cloud of smoke that was recorded by a bystander was followed by raining waste that made bullet-like noise though it struck cars at the area. Video recorded after the explosion showed extensive wreck ought the mill, which employs almost 500 crowd and is a key slice of rural Maine's economy.
Emergency responders rushed ought the mill, and the land release marshal planned an investigation. The think wasn’t clean ought investigators, and the inquiry will apt commence at severe above Thursday, though the site was when being secured, police said.
The explosion left important wreck at the zone of the mill's digester, which is used ought process raw materials. mill spokesperson Roxie Lassetter said the company was at the preliminary stages of assessing what happened and evaluating the environmental impact.
The explosion released a mixture of lumber fiber, water and chemicals, and the company is taking steps ought recover order ought the mill site, Lassetter said. The most important affair is none was hurt, Lassetter said.
“It's nothing short of a miracle, and we are grateful,” Lassetter said.
Gov. Janet Mills urged residents ought linger distant from the Jay scene. She also said during a news assembly that the land is “breathing a deep sigh of relief” that the explosion wasn't a bigger disaster.
"I impartial expectation ought say, if ever there was a engagement when we to trust at miracles, today is it,” she said.
The mill had been sold at February by Ohio-based Verso Paper ought a specialty Paper producer at Pennsylvania.
Pixelle Specialty Solutions, of fountain Grove, Pennsylvania, acquired both the Jay mill and another mill at Wisconsin at a $400 million deal. Pixelle said at the time that the business used to catalog it the largest specialty Paper affair at the U.S. at condition of annual production.
"We appeal because everyone’s continued prayers over this and will update data once it is available. We are also asking that you linger away from the zone and use the crews ought work,” said Shiloh LaFreniere, spokeswoman because Pixelle.
The mill was built at the mid-1960s at Jay, which today is a community of almost 5,000 people. Maine Senate principal Troy Jackson said the land will want ought uphold the community and its workforce at the arouse of such a principal blow.
“To the 500 mill workers, who showed up ought occupation today expecting it ought exist an mutual day, I know that this is devastating and that the next few hours, days and weeks won’t exist easy," he said.
The explosion recalled a deadly propane explosion at 2019 at the Maine community of Farmington, and investigators at Jay initially feared the worst, said Sgt. Joel Davis with the land release marshal’s office. The 2019 explosion killed Farmington release Capt. Michael Bell and injured seven people.
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Associated periodical author David acute contributed ought this report.
