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Searsmont assistant fire chief dies a month after lumber mill explosion
Bangor Daily News • • nation
Key Points:
- Searsmont Assistant Fire Chief Wayne Woodbury, 76, died Sunday at Maine Medical Center due to injuries sustained while responding to a fire at Robbins Lumber on May 15.
- The fire and subsequent explosion at the lumber yard also killed 27-year-old Morrill firefighter Andrew Cross and injured at least 10 others, with several still hospitalized.
- The fire began around 10:05 a.m. in an area with wood shavings packed in plastic bags and spread to a sawdust-filled silo that exploded about an hour later near firefighters.
- Robbins Lumber resumed operations at the Searsmont site on May 26 despite the ongoing investigation.
- A joint federal-state investigation is underway to determine the fire's cause, though efforts were initially hindered by high winds following the explosion.
