A northern Maine fire station is still unable to respond to calls nearly two months after a fire.
Multiple lithium-ion batteries caught fire while charging on May 21 and damaged the Stacyville Fire Department’s station, three fire trucks and engines, and gear. Firefighters were not inside the station when the fire started, but did go inside to try to save the equipment.
The fire department has no equipment in service and is “in bad shape,” Assistant Fire Chief John Cummings said Monday.
The department is still navigating the insurance process, which includes checking damage to the building, Cummings said. The trucks were cleaned by mid-June but the department is waiting for the insurance company to confirm if they are viable.
Because of this uncertainty, questions remain about when the department will be fully back up and running and what a long term closure means for the small town that neighbors Katahdin Woods and Waters.
Neighboring fire departments in Sherman and Patten are responding to Stacyville’s calls, which have mostly been fire alarm activations so far, Sherman Fire Chief Thomas Hayes. The towns neighbor each other, with their town halls about 4 miles apart.
The Sherman Fire Department will likely be responding to calls with Stacyville for the next couple of years even after the station is up and running again, Hayes said. Stacyville has not yet figured out if it will restore the fire station or build a new one, but Hayes said Sherman has offered to help store the town’s fire trucks and engines if needed.
He’s been working with the Stacyville Fire Department to figure out what equipment it needs and where the best places are to buy it.
A fire truck was donated by the Red Knights Maine Chapter III in Birch Harbor, Cummings said. The department hasn’t serviced the truck yet, but he said it’s nice to have a unit to start the rebuild. Various fire departments have donated multiple hoses and loaner turnout gear.
“Other fire departments have come out of the woodwork to donate hose and other gear,” Hayes said. “The outreach, at least from where I sit, has been astronomical to at least get them going again.”
Lee Fire Rescue is hosting a spaghetti benefit dinner for the Stacyville Fire Department on July 20 at a cost of $10 per person.
Staff with the Maine Municipal Association were scheduled to talk with a member of the Stacyville Select Board on Monday afternoon, Communications Director Kate Dufour said. The association has a risk management department that assists with insurance claims, she said.
“I think everything is moving in the right direction and hopefully they’ll be able to move forward soon enough,” Hayes said.
