Historic northern Ont. plywood mill committed to restarting operations after devastating fire

Hundreds of northern Ontario mill workers and their families are on pins and needles after Cochrane's biggest employer went up in flames.

Fire Chief Richard Vallee said he was camping about 10 minutes away when he saw a big plume of smoke coming from the Rockshield Engineered Plywood Plant on Boisvert Crescent on Friday night.

Vallee said the mill was in full production when the fire broke out shortly before 7 p.m. in the "back house" where sawdust is kept.

Crews were able "to keep the main fire to the pond and chip pile area and to areas of the roof for the most part," Mayor Peter Politis said in a news release Monday.

No injuries reported

Several people reported hearing what they described as an "explosion," but he said the cause is still under investigation.

Cochrane's volunteer fire brigade rushed in to help. And through an agreement with nearby communities in the Cochrane District, they were able to enlist the help of volunteer firefighters from Iroquois Falls and Kapuskasing.

Expedition Helicopters pitched in with a 180-gallon bucket that scooped up water from nearby Commando Lake and dropped it on the fire.

Vallee said the operator estimates they dropped around 30,000 litres of water on the blaze.

"We are lucky they have someone that can do that," he said.

Fire at Rockshield Engineered Plywood Plant in Cochrane, Ont., August 9, 2024

Quick response

Politis praised the firefighters and helicopter service for rallying "to keep the mill intact and avoid potential disastrous spread in the community."

"We sometimes take the local dynamics for granted but in cases like this, we should all be extremely aware of the fact that our fire department is volunteer-based and Expedition Helicopters is an invaluable resource that no other small town has, which epitomizes small-town camaraderie and commitment," he said.

Beccy Simpkins, who lives about two minutes away from the mill, told CTV News in a phone interview the fire was very concerning due to its proximity to her house.

Simpkins said she is grateful they were able to keep the fire from spreading.

Another resident, Erin Sigouin-Jurynec, praised the emergency response by the firefighters, police and Expedition "cowboys."

"They reacted quickly, they did a great job," she said.

"Everyone got together, everyone was calm."

Her husband is a volunteer firefighter, but recently had surgery, so he was unable to respond to the call.

Vallee said the majority of the crew left at 6 a.m. Saturday, but firefighters were on the scene for a total of 21 hours, keeping a skeleton crew to fight the hot spots.

Fire at Rockshield Engineered Plywood Plant in Cochrane, Ont., August 9, 2024

Mill remains closed

The Rockshield mill, which employs around 200 people from the town of 6,000, remains closed as of Monday. Vallee said equipment crucial to the operation was damaged in the fire.

With the mill closed, Simpkins said there are a lot of people out of work and concerned that they will lose their jobs, but the mayor is optimistic.

"Right now, the company and the town’s highest priority are the people who work at Rockshield and their families during this terrible disaster," Politis said.

"I’ve met with Rockshield (Monday) and left feeling encouraged by the entrepreneurial spirit and their constructive focus on helping employees transition (through) this situation. The company is committed to trying to restart operations, assuming resources are available, and we will all be leaning on and working with all levels of government to do so."

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Rockshield has been a major economic driver for the community, injecting more than $90 million into the local economy since restarting in 2015, the mayor added.

"This plant has been an integral part of this community’s viability and has sustained families and local socio-economics for generations," Politis said.

"The task at hand now is to rally together once more and find the path to not only rebuilding this mill but modernizing it to support the many more generations going forward."

Fire at Rockshield Engineered Plywood Plant in Cochrane, Ont., August 9, 2024

Second fire in less than two weeks

The fire at Rockshield is the second fire in the small town in less than two weeks.

A fire broke out in an outdoor bark biomass pile at the GreenFirst Forest Products Cochrane sawmill July 31.

"We had a fire start in our bark pile and that the fire was quickly brought under control by the rapid intervention of the GreenFirst employees on scene, the Cochrane Fire Department and a helicopter," GreenFirst Forest Products President Michel Lessard told CTV News in an email Aug. 14.

"No one was injured, and the impact is negligible"

Expedition Helicopters helped with the aerial attack in that fire, as well.

Shawn MacDonald told CTV News he used to work at GreenFirst.

"The sawmill fire in the bark pile could have been avoided if they only listened to the boots-on-the-ground employees who raised concerns about it a year ago. I know! I was one of them," MacDonald wrote in a social media post.

"How does that make an employee feel when they know they're going into an unsafe workplace and possibly getting seriously injured? All of this creates low morale, which leads to unsafe work practices. These companies ram policies and procedures down your throat when you work there and when you do raise legitimate concerns, you're considered a loudmouth."

The Cochrane Fire Department said it responded to one fire call in June and three in July.