Fire destroys plywood plant in Libby

The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, with help from a state fire marshal, is still investigating the cause of the fire that burned the former Stimson Lumber Co., plywood plant to the ground last Thursday, though the area of origin has been determined, a fire investigator said Monday.

“According to witness statements and what we found, it (the fire’s origin) is in the plywood plant close to where the concrete vats were,” sheriff deputy and fire investigator Kirk Kraft said. “It was on the north end of the building.”

Contractor J.T. Welding and Construction had begun the task last fall of demolishing three-fourths of the massive 4.7-acre building.

“The whole idea was to salvage and recycle as much material as possible,” said Paul Rumelhart, executive director of the Kootenai River Development Council, which manages the industrial site that the building rested on.

The demolition crew had been working in the area of the fire’s origin on Friday, Kraft said, and left around 5 or 5:30 p.m. Kraft declined to answer whether or not the crew was using welding equipment at the time.

Kraft said on Monday that the investigation would be complete by Tuesday or Wednesday.

“We’re continuing to eliminate possible causes as we go,” he said.

Libby firefighters were called to the fire at 9:40 p.m. Thursday, but by the time they arrived three minutes later, the building was engulfed in flames.

The rubble was still smoldering on Friday while a steady stream of vehicles passed by to see the destruction.

“The moon was shining out and the plume was so huge that it looked like someone dropped an atomic bomb,” Lincoln County Sheriff Daryl Anderson said. “Embers were flying through the air all over.”

Residents from neighboring homes were evacuated as Libby and Troy firefighters worked to contain the flames.

“My husband said get your meds, get your clothes and get the heck out of here,” said Kay Tarbert, who lives on Fifth Street Extension across from the former mill.

Though the flames were shooting straight up – not toward homes – they were extremely hot, Tarbert said, and ashes were blowing into people’s yards.

The fire left little to salvage out of the businesses that were using the building, but no one was hurt and no homes caught fire.

Phil Spencer and Joel Chandler watched helplessly as their specialty business, Wedge Wood Products, caught fire.

“It hadn’t burnt yet but the fire department wasn’t able to get water up to it because of the 2,400-volt line that was running next to the road there,” Spencer said. “My partner begged the fire marshal to put water on it to save it, but the fire marshal said he couldn’t because the line wasn’t shut off.”

Occasional explosions added to the dramatic scene Thursday, which Anderson said were fueled by propane tanks, tar from the structure’s roof and wood preservative creosote.

“About all you can do is protect the structures on Wisconsin Avenue and Fifth Street and watch the fire burn,” Anderson said, “because they weren’t going to put it out.”

Eventually, all that was standing was the frame of the structure.

“After it burned long enough, it was just the beams,” Anderson said. “Then it was like a domino effect – one caved in and tipped over and then they all fell.”

Residents began returning to their homes about 1 a.m., he said.

Troy firefighters assisted the Libby Volunteer Fire Department in containing the blaze so that it wouldn’t spread to homes.

Larry Chapel, Troy Volunteer Fire Department chief, praised Libby firefighters.

“Libby did a very good job of keeping control of the entire situation,” Chapel said. “It was very well handled.”

The Cabinet View Fire Department was on standby in case another fire broke out in Libby during the ordeal. Fisher River Valley Fire and Rescue was ready to back up Cabinet View if needed, Marion firefighters were prepared to back up Fisher River, and Smith Valley firefighters were ready to help Marion.

“Across county lines, agencies and fire departments pulled together when something bad happened,” said Dan Leavell, Cabinet View Fire Department chief. “It was really neat. The community ought to be proud.”