Lumber storage building burns in Littleton | Public Safety | unionleader.com

Firefighters from several fire departments in the North Country battled a 2-alarm blaze that engulfed a lumber storage building in Littleton on Sunday morning.

The fire broke out shortly before 8 a.m. in the large building at 807 Meadow St. that’s owned and operated by Varney & Smith Lumber Company, which is located in neighboring Lisbon.

A lumber storage facility on Meadow Street in Littleton is engulfed in flames Sunday morning.

Intense flames swept through the building, which had several large piles of kiln-dried lumber stacked up inside. Littleton Fire Chief Chad Miller said two large delivery trucks, a tractor, forklifts and other equipment were also housed in the building, which partially collapsed moments after firefighters arrived.

According to Miller, fire and medical crews were on a medical call when the fire broke out, but the engine left to respond to the scene and quickly began an exterior fire attack as firefighters began arriving from other nearby communities.

As the flames tore through the building, several witnesses gathered behind a nearby Cumberland Farms to watch from a safer distance.

Firefighters take direction from Littleton Fire Chief Chad Miller at the scene of a lumber yard fire on Meadow Street Sunday morning.

The state Fire Marshal’s Office also responded to the scene to assist as investigators searched for clues.

“The cause is under investigation. We haven’t determined the cause or the origin yet. Obviously there are going to be some challenges given the amount of damage here to get an exact cause or origin,” Miller said.

No firefighters or civilians were injured in the fire, Miller said.

No other buildings were located near the lumber facility, which minimized the risk of the fire spreading to other structures.

Firefighters battle intense flames at a lumber storage facility on Meadow Street in Littleton Sunday morning.

“We were not worried a lot about exposures here, but it was just very difficult. We had more than 55 bundles of wood that would have to be moved by forklift and those were in various stages of burning. You can see the debris from that. It just took a long time to work through all of that,” the chief said, adding that while some trees a few feet from the building were charred, firefighters were able to keep the fire from spreading and causing a larger brush fire.

The fire was brought under control around noon, but firefighters continued working at the scene throughout the afternoon.

When asked if the building and its contents were a total loss, Miller said, “I couldn’t speak to that, but obviously there’s a lot of loss.”

A representative from Varney & Smith Lumber Company could not be reached for comment Sunday afternoon.

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