Live updates: Over 100 responders salute remains of firefighter in Augusta procession

An explosion and large fire at a Searsmont lumber mill killed one and injured at least 10 people, including firefighters and civilians, authorities said, and drew a massive emergency response Friday.

Multiple firefighters suffered significant burns after their equipment caught on fire after a silo exploded at the mill, according to officials at the Kennebunk Fire Department. Civilians were also injured, according to the Thorndike Fire Department.

A spokesperson for Maine Medical Center in Portland said 10 patients who had been injured in the incident were being transferred to the emergency department after initial treatment at hospitals in Belfast and Rockport. Victims had also been treated at hospitals in Augusta and Bangor before being transferred to other facilities, spokespeople said.

Department of Public Safety Director Michael Sauschuck said at a brief news conference that it’s been a “very traumatic afternoon.” He said he was unable to share more details or take questions at this point.

Huge plumes of smoke were visible for miles around the Waldo County town. Crews from across Midcoast Maine were dispatched to the scene at Robbins Lumber, located at 506 Main St. S, just to the south of the village center.

Read our live updates below.

About 100 people lined up Friday evening in Augusta to salute the remains of the firefighter who was killed responding to the blaze at Robbins Lumber. 

A line of first responders salutes as the flag-draped casket carrying the remains of a firefighter who died in the Searsmont explosion is taken into the Office of Chief Medical Examiner in Augusta on Friday evening. (Joe Phelan/Staff Photographer) Purchase this image

There were more than 50 vehicles in a procession with the hearse. Augusta Fire Department’s Tower One truck held up a large American flag.

As the unidentified firefighter’s remains were taken to the medical examiner’s office, first responders including firefighters from departments across the state, Maine State Police, Forest Rangers, and other law enforcement agencies lined the driveway.

Gov. Janet Mills visited Searsmont on Friday to meet with first responders.

She described Robbins Lumber as “a cornerstone of the community and mainstay of the forest products industry,” in a statement Friday evening.

“I told the Robbins family that Maine people will have their back as they face the challenge ahead,” Mills said. “I ask Maine people to keep the Robbins family, their employees, first responders, and the people of Searsmont and Waldo County in their thoughts and prayers.”

One firefighter was found dead on the scene after the explosion at Robbins Lumber on Friday, officials say.

Some of the others injured remain in serious or critical condition, according to Shannon Moss, spokesperson of the Maine Department of Public Safety.

The Office of Chief Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy on the deceased firefighter and confirm their identity.

A recording of dispatch communications from the scene, captured by Broadcastify, reflected the harrowing moments immediately after the explosion.

“There’s been a huge explosion. The silo just exploded,” an unidentified man at the scene calls over the radio. “Multiple firefighters injured and burning. We need more help here now — immediately! … This is very bad.”

Asked how many additional injuries had occurred, the man responds: “We have 10 to 12 more. A lot of people with third-degree. Explosion! Multiple fire trucks are burning.”

The man, whose voice was rushed and distressed, went quiet as other responders told dispatchers they were headed to the scene.

Fire departments across Maine shared their condolences in social media posts Friday night for the firefighter who died and the others injured.

Many posted images with the phrase “Searsmont Strong” and said the incident was a reminder of the sacrifices first responders make and risks they take every day.

The fire and explosion in Waldo County sent ripple effects beyond state lines as well. Fire departments from surrounding states, including Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York, also chimed in with words of support on social media.

“The fire service is one family, and when one department hurts, we all feel it,” the Orleans, Vermont Fire Department stated. “We stand with our brothers and sisters in Maine during this incredibly difficult time and extend our deepest condolences to everyone affected.”

The Central Valley Fire Fighters Association, representing numerous fire departments in New Brunswick, Canada, also shared their condolences to those impacted on Friday.

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree, who had released a brief statement earlier in the day, said she was “heartbroken” by the news of one firefighter’s death Friday evening.

She commended the efforts of first responders and said her thoughts were with them and their families.

 “Firefighters and emergency crews put everything on the line for us, and today is a painful reminder of the sacrifices they make,” Pingree said. “I’m grateful to the medical teams, mutual aid departments, and volunteers supporting the response and recovery efforts.”

Twenty-three local fire and rescue departments assisted the Searsmont Fire Department in its response to the Robbins Lumber fire and explosion.

First responders came from departments in Albion, Appleton, Belmont, Camden, Freedom, Hermon, Hope, Jackson, Lincolnville, Montville, Morrill, Northport, Palermo, Prospect, Searsport, Stockton Springs, Thorndike, Union, Unity, Waldo, Warren, West Frankfort, and Whitefield assisted, according to Shannon Moss, spokesperson for the Maine Department of Public Safety.

Anthony Lancaster with the Jackson Fire Department delivers food to firefighters that were pulling water from a stream while battling the fire at Robbins Lumber is Searsmont, Maine Friday May 15, 2026. Firefighters receiving food from left are Robert Gould, Chris Josselyn (cq) and Ron Wellman, They are from the Belmont Fire Department.The firefighters said they responded to the call at 10:06 Friday morning. Lancaster said he placed hose line and ran errands while working the fire. (Rich Abrahamson/Staff Photographer)

Maine Forest Rangers, State Fire Marshal’s Office, Maine State Police, Maine Department of Environmental Protection, ATF and OSHA also assisted, Moss said.

American Red Cross Northern New England said in a Facebook post that its disaster action team has mobilized in response to the Searsmont fire following a request for assistance. The organization said 10 trained disaster responders were on the scene.

“The Red Cross is serving in a support capacity, ensuring firefighters and first responders have what they need to continue fighting the fire,” the post stated. “We are providing water, snacks and comfort items like blankets and cots. The Red Cross is in close communication with local emergency management — and we stand ready to assist the community. Our hearts go out to everyone affected by this fire and to the brave first responders on the scene.”

As the flames subsided and the smoke cleared, clean up crews began making their way towards the Robbins Lumber mill shortly before 6 p.m. Friday.

Trucks from the state Department of Environmental Protection and the environmental cleanup company CleanHarbor were seen driving up the road towards the mill, along with flatbed trucks carrying portable lighting.

Even so, there was still smoke rising from the site.

Maine Medical Center in Portland is treating 10 patients injured in the Searsmont explosion who were initially brought to four other Maine hospitals.

MaineHealth said in an update Friday evening that four of the patients were initially treated at MaineHealth Pen Bay Hospital in Rockport; four at MaineHealth Waldo Hospital in Belfast; one at MaineGeneral Medical Center in Augusta; and one at Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor.

MaineHealth said it would provide more updates over the weekend.

The plume of smoke rising from Robbins Lumber continues to shrink as firefighters battle the blaze. What was once a thick column of black smoke is now smaller, grayer, and mostly transparent.

Large flames that were visible through the woods surrounding the mill appeared mostly knocked down by 5:15 p.m. as fire trucks continued streaming up and down the roads surrounding the mill with their lights and sirens blazing.

SEARSMONT — The plume of smoke coming from Robbins Lumber began to shrink again around 4:30 p.m., with little black smoke visible. But large flames could still be seen through the trees from where a reporter was perched.

Forest industry watchers were surprised Friday as news unfolded of a fire at a Robbins Lumber facility in Searsmont.

Still owned by the same family that founded it on the St. George River in 1881, Robbins Lumber is well respected and well known across the forest industry, said Eric Kingsley, an industry analyst at Innovative Natural Resource Solutions in Portland.

“They’re a really well-run company,” he said. “They’ve been a part of Midcoast Maine’s forest industry since forever.”

Robbins Lumber is one of the biggest white pine mills in the country and, according to a 2024 MaineBiz story, employs about 225 people. In 2011, the governor’s office heralded the Robbinses for their forest stewardship, awarding them a Maine Department of Conservation award. The department’s commissioner called them “an iconic Maine family.”

In 2024, another fire at the company’s facility took place in a control room for the kilns, according to multiple news reports. It was contained and didn’t result in any injuries. The PenBay Pilot reported that the Searsport Fire Department had a roster of 14 volunteers, many of whom were out in the woods hunting when the call came in and returned to Robbins Lumber to respond.

Robbins Lumber has had one workplace safety incident investigated by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration in the past decade. It happened in 2025, and the company was fined $5,427. The details of the incident are not immediately clear, but according to OSHA records, it appeared to involve a lack of regular inspections of procedures in the planer facility.

A victim of the Searsmont incident who was taken to Bangor’s Eastern Maine Medical Center in critical condition Friday has been transferred to another facility, spokesperson Chris Facchini said in a written statement.

Facchini did not say where the victim was taken or what their condition was, but he said the hospital does not anticipate receiving any more patients from Searsmont.

SEARSMONT — Robbins Lumber will be closed for at least the next week as the fire is extinguished and investigated, said Christian Halsted, whose family co-owns the mill.

Christian Halstead, whose family is part owner of Robbins Lumber, talks on his phone as smoke billows Friday after an explosion and fire at the sawmill in Searsmont. (Rich Abrahamson/Staff Photographer)

Halsted reiterated Friday afternoon that the fire’s cause is still undetermined and asked for sympathy as his company and family work to recover.

“This is obviously a hugely devastating day for the family,” he said. “We feel for the first responders, family, the employees.”

SEARSMONT — State Fire Marshal Shawn Esler said at a brief Friday afternoon news conference that the investigation into the Robbins Lumber fire is yet to begin as the blaze continues to burn.

“We have not even really begun a scene examination,” he said.

The fire was first reported at 10:05 a.m., Esler said. Most of the firefighters responding were volunteers from across Waldo County.

Members of the media assemble prior to a Friday afternoon news conference in Searsmont as the fire at Robbins Lumber burns in the background. (Dylan Tusinski/Staff Writer)

Michael Sauschuck, director of the state’s Department of Public Safety, confirmed that several first responders were injured in the fire. Sauschuck did not confirm how many people were hurt or what their conditions are; he said it was too early for officials to share details or take questions.

Sauschuck said it had been a “very traumatic afternoon.”

The plume of smoke coming from the sawmill explosion in Searsmont showed up on radar, climbing at least 4,000 feet above ground and stretching almost 20 miles long from southern Waldo County toward Bath, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Jon Palmer.

No meteorologist would have mistaken it for rain, because radar measures the size and uniformity of what is in the air, Palmer said. Raindrops are generally similar in size and shape and show up on radar in red, while smoke is a chaotic mix of differently sized and shaped ash and debris that shows up as blue.

Friday’s rain helped contain the risk of the fire spreading into the area forests and limited the plume’s impact on local air quality, Palmer said. The weather is already changing in Searsmont, however, with Saturday’s forecast featuring dry weather and as much as 15 degrees warmer.

“The rain was definitely a good thing — while it lasted,” Palmer said.

Maine Medical Center in Portland is the only comprehensive burn care facility in Maine and northern New Hampshire. At least 10 victims of the explosion were being transported to the hospital, a spokesperson said earlier Friday.

ROCKPORT — As of 3:20 p.m., activity had quieted outside Pen Bay Hospital’s emergency wing, where several patients were treated in the immediate aftermath of the explosion.

The scene was quiet outside the emergency department of Pen Bay Hospital in Rockport, where some of the victims of Friday’s Searsmont explosion were initially treated. (Ethan Horton/Staff Writer)

Those patients are now being transported to Maine Medical Center in Portland.

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, sent her condolences to those impacted by the incident Friday afternoon.

The senator said she has known the Robbins family “for many years.”

“My heart goes out to them, their employees, and the first responders who have come from all over the region to help in the emergency response,” Collins said. “This is a very sad crisis, and all those affected are in my prayers.”

SEARSMONT — After having slowed somewhat earlier in the afternoon, the plume of smoke billowing from the scene Friday was thickening and had gotten lighter by about 3:15 p.m.

Several ladder trucks were spraying the flames. A photographer on scene said he had heard several more explosions since arriving.

Maine Medical Center in Portland is preparing to receive 10 patients who were injured in the Searsmont explosion, hospital spokesperson Caroline Cornish said.

Those patients were initially treated at Pen Bay Hospital in Rockport and Waldo Hospital in Belfast, Cornish said in a written statement Friday Afternoon.

Maine Medical Center “has teams on standby ready to treat these patients,” Cornish said.

“Please just pray!!!!” the Liberty Fire & Rescue Department posted to Facebook on Friday, sharing a photo of the massive plume of black smoke.

SEARSMONT — A line of cars started streaming in to the Fraternity Village General Store shortly after 2 p.m. with dozens and dozens of cases of water as Mainers from up and down the Midcoast pitched in.

The store’s back room was nearly full by 2:30.

Cases of water donated by Mainers fill the backroom at Fraternity Village General Store in Searsmont on Friday. (Dylan Tusinski/Staff Writer)

“A lot of us have friends and family (at the mill),” said Ashley Cook, who came with a pickup truck filled with bottled water. “And if we don’t, we all know someone who is.”

SEARSMONT — The thick black column of smoke rising from the mill was visibly much smaller by just after 2 p.m. than it did an hour prior.

Even through the ceiling of gray storm clouds, the smoke had been visible from miles away around noontime.

Civilians were injured during the fire at Robbins Lumber, according to the Thorndike Fire Department.

The department said “multiple firefighters and civilians have sustained injuries during this incident” in a social media post around 2 p.m.

“Multiple maydays have been called, and units from across the state are either responding or already on scene assisting with operations,” the department said.

They encouraged locals to stay clear of the area and surrounding roadways to allow  emergency personnel to work efficiently.

In an email to the school community Friday afternoon, officials at RSU 71 — which covers Searsmont and other nearby towns — offered assistance as needed during a “difficult time.”

The email said dismissal times Friday were still scheduled as normal, though transportation may be delayed for some students.

Anyone in need of support is encouraged to contact Assistant Superintendent Jessica Giorgetti at 207-338-1960 or [email protected].

MaineGeneral Medical Center in Augusta “has received one patient with burns who was treated and transferred to a higher level of care. We do not expect any more patients related to this incident,” said hospital spokesperson Joy McKenna.

McKenna confirmed that the patient was transferred to another hospital but declined to say which, citing federal confidentiality laws.

Shortly after the blaze was reported, Searsmont’s Fraternity Village General Store began soliciting donations for victims and their families. Owner Amanda Boyington said it didn’t take long for them to start rolling in.

“Within in the first hour, we had more than a dozen people come with cases of water,” she said. Some called from as far away as Bangor to say they were bringing supplies, she added.

Fraternity Village General Store in Searsmont quickly began soliciting donations for victims of Friday’s explosion and fire. (Dylan Tusinski/Staff Writer)

A handful of Waldo County sheriff’s deputies and volunteer firefighters bought pizzas from the store to deliver to first responders at the scene, Boyington said.

Some of those who came to make donations hung around in the store’s parking lot to watch the stream of fire trucks whizzing up and down Main Street.

“It’s just awful,” Searsmont resident Winston Durkee said from in front of the store. “(The mill) is such a huge part of this community. We all want to support them however we can.”

Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor is reporting one patient in critical condition from the Searsmont incident, according to hospital spokesperson Chris Facchini.

The Fire Chaplains of Maine is offering support to people affected by the incident in Searsmont, including first responders, dispatchers, medical personnel and the surrounding community.

“Situations like this can be difficult and stressful for many people, and we want everyone to know that support is available. The Fire Chaplains of Maine are here to provide care, encouragement, prayer and support to anyone who may need it,” the group said in a Facebook post.

A fire chaplain can be requested by calling 207-329-2273 or sending a message to [email protected].

Multiple firefighters suffered significant burns after their equipment caught on fire during an explosion at the mill, according to officials at the Kennebunk Fire Department and West Forks Volunteer Fire Department.

Catherine Robbins-Halstead, an owner of the mill, told reporters on scene in Searsmont that all employees were accounted for.

“Buildings can be replaced, employees cannot,” she said.

Robbins Lumber is an important staple for the community it supports, several residents said Friday.

The mill employs several hundred people from the area, said Searsmont resident Lori Ward, who lives just up the road from the facility. Schoolchildren from the area often take field trips and tours of the lumberyard, she said.

“It’s a big part of this community,” she said. “We saw all the smoke and immediately knew this was bad.”

According to the Midcoast Villager, people on scene reported that a silo filled with wood shavings exploded after 11 a.m., leaving multiple people with injuries. It wasn’t clear how many people might be hurt.

Local authorities have not confirmed any information about the fire.

SEARSMONT — About a half-dozen fire trucks are filling their tanks with water from Bartlett Stream near the town center. They’re driving down from the mill and heading back to the scene as soon as they’re topped off.

Fire trucks refill at Bartlett Stream in Searsmont on Friday. (Dylan Tusinski/Staff Writer)

“There’s some water (at the mill), but it’s such a large response that it’s not enough to support all the firefighting efforts,” Prospect firefighter Mike Drinkwater said from beside his truck.

SEARSMONT — Conner Smith, who lives just down the road from the plant, said he was in Mic Mac Market in Searsmont shortly before noon when the woman serving his pizza told him why four fire trucks and an ambulance had just flown by.

He left the store and drove to Appleton Ridge Road, where he joined about two dozen people watching the flames and smoke.

A group of bystanders watches the flames and smoke Friday in Searsmont. (Ethan Horton/Staff Writer)

Smith has been standing in his truck bed for an hour and a half, and the flames have not died down, he said.

“It’s really not good,” Smith said. 

U.S. Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said in a social media post that he has visited the Robbins Lumber mill frequently.

“My heart goes out to Jim Robbins and his family, the workers and the Searsmont community,” he said.

In 2017, the offices of the lumber mill were used as a Senate hearing room as King ran an Energy Committee field hearing on how rural industries could be strengthened by energy technology developments.

At the time, the Robbins family was in the process of installing a $36 million, 8.5 megawatt combined heat and power unit. King said at the time that the project was a model for rural industries attempting to lower power costs.

The Camden Fire & Rescue Department says it has crews assisting first responders in Searsmont and anticipates “having personnel committed to helping for several days.”

“Our thoughts are with the injured, medical professionals providing care and first responders working to control the situation,” the department said in a social media post.

The department said it would not be issuing burn permits Friday or Saturday as a result of its help with the response.

Based on texts she exchanged with people responding to Friday’s incident, the fire appears to be contained to the sawmill side of the facility, not the biomass operation, said Krysta West, the executive director of the Maine Forest Products Council, a trade group that represents many Maine sawmills.

Georges River Energy is an 8.5-megawatt biomass fired cogeneration power plant located on the Robbins Lumber property, according to the company’s website. The plant went online in 2018.

Steam heated up to 900 degrees Fahrenheit is used to drive a turbine, according to the Robbins website. A portion of the steam is removed and used to dry lumber. Additionally, in the winter months, steam is used to heat the buildings throughout the Searsmont campus.

Two members of Maine’s congressional delegation released messages about the possible explosion Friday.

U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, D-2nd District, said he and his team are seeking out more information about the fire and explosion and he is “praying for the safety and well-being of first responders and everyone else on site.”

“I ask locals to follow law enforcement instructions, and to look to official channels and trusted sources for more information as it becomes available,” he said.

U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-1st District, asked people to keep the Searsmont community and first responders in their thoughts.

The thick black plume of smoke from the fire was visible from miles away early Friday afternoon, even through the low gray clouds lingering in the air.

A large plume of heavy smoke from Friday’s fire and possible explosion in Searsmont could be seen for miles. (Ethan Horton/Staff Writer)

Rain had been falling heavily but has now slowed to a drizzle.

SEARSMONT — Maine State Police have blocked off State Route 131 between Appleton Ridge Road and Camden Road while crews fight the fire nearby.

Heavy black smoke could be seen rising from the site, located just south of the heart of the village, just before 1 p.m.

Augusta fire Chief Dave Groder confirmed that emergency crews from the city arrived in Searsmont to find multiple ambulances and one patient who was already being treated for injuries at the scene.

He said the Augusta Fire Department sent one ambulance and one command vehicle to the fire.

A video shared with the Press Herald by Tiffany Mannarini, who lives in Appleton, showed a helicopter over the scene as flames and smoke rose over the smoldering lumber yard.

Video courtesy of Tiffany Mannarini

Witnesses said they saw two helicopters briefly land and take off near the fire. Flight radar indicated the helicopters were owned by LifeFlight of Maine.

APPLETON — State Route 131 northbound is closed at its intersection with State Route 105, with a state trooper directing traffic.

No one was hurt in a November 2024 fire at Robbins Lumber; firefighters contained it to a control room, according to multiple media reports.

PALERMO — Emergency dispatch reports indicated that a burn victim from the Searsmont incident drove toward Augusta to get to the hospital.

Later, scanner traffic indicated that responders had intercepted the victim at the Sheepscot Boat Landing off Route 3 in Palermo.

Shortly after noontime Friday, no one could be seen at the boat landing, where an unattended vehicle with EMS plates was parked alongside two other vehicles.

Gov. Janet Mills said in a post on Facebook that she has been briefed “on the situation unfolding in Searsmont.”

She asked people to stay away from the area and follow instructions from law enforcement to allow emergency personnel to respond to the scene.

“I ask Maine people to join me in keeping all those affected in their thoughts,” she wrote.

Investigators from the state fire marshal’s office and rangers from the Maine Forest Service are responding to the lumber mill, Maine Department of Public Safety Spokesperson Shannon Moss said.

She declined to release more information until investigators arrive at the scene.

A video shared with the Portland Press Herald by a reader showed a massive plume of smoke as flames burned, apparently at Robbins Lumber on Main Street South in Searsmont.

Video courtesy of Tiffany Mannarini