Two steps forward, one step back

Reports of lumberyard or production shop fires affect us deeply and emotionally, even when we live nowhere near them or had ever heard of them before. It’s a connection all woodworking professionals have, and why one-man shops and major companies share many of the same feelings when they hear about them. 

I’ve talked about major woodshop fires before, following up on them whenever I can. With that in mind, there’s good news about two recent fires, and bad news about another. 

The first is the devasting fire and explosion at the Robbins Lumber in Searsmont, Maine. That blaze killed two and seriously injured a dozen more, including members of the Robbins family. The mid-May fire shut down the large facility, but they managed to bounce back by the end of the month with full operations. There’s still a good bit of rebuilding and repair to do, but they are moving forward again. 

In February of last year, C&C Forest Products’ mill in Coushatta, La., closed after a huge fire. The company, which has a second facility in Arkansas that continued business as usual, has announced that the Coushatta mill is rebuilding. What’s more, the rebuilt facility is planned to add 77 new jobs, plus increased capacity for as much as 90 million bf of specialty lumber. 

Finally, a lumber fire not too far from me in Lebanon, Pa., didn’t have as happy of an ending.  A 3-alarm blaze last September at Weaber Lumber destroyed both inventory and essential equipment, taking 30 fire companies from surrounding areas eight hours to get the fire under control. The company was already experiencing financial difficulties, having just filed for Chapter 11 protection shortly before the fire. There are no plans to rebuild the mill.