JAY, Maine — There has been an explosion at the Androscoggin Mill in Jay.
Franklin County Sheriff’s Dept. says crews are responding and entrances to the mill on Crash Road and Riley Road are closed.
A manager at a Hannaford about two miles from the mill said he felt the explosion and saw the big cloud of smoke.
According to the Portland Press Herald, the mill, once owned by Ohio-based Verso Corp., was sold to Pixelle Specialty Solutions LLC, a paper manufacturer based in Pennsylvania.
Alan Ulman, spokesman for Pixelle Specialty Solutions, confirmed the explosion to NEWS CENTER Maine just after 1 p.m. Wednesday, but said he had few answers so far.
“We are obviously researching it,” he said. “We promptly implemented emergency response procedures. There are multiple emergency personnel at the scene. Obviously our first concern is to verify that the employees are accounted for, and we have no definitive information yet. Our second priority is to determine any environmental impact to the surrounding area and again, I have no definitive information yet.”
Editor’s note: we have removed the audio from the video due to language used.
This is a developing story and will be updated. NEWS CENTER Maine is on its way to the scene.
