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Fire at Ancram Paper Mill under investigation

Nov 01, 2020 6:00 am
Bill Williams is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media four fire companies responded to a structure fire the morning of October 31, at Schweitzer-Mauduit International Inc., better known as the Ancram Paper Mill. At approximately 8:54 a.m., the Ancram and Taghkanic fire companies responded to the paper mill on Route 82, when a fire was spotted on the roof of the baghouse. The baghouse is an air pollution control device and dust collector that removes from the air particulates or gases released from commercial processes. When Ancram firefighters arrived on the scene, they requested mutual aid assistance from Copake and Hillsdale; the Livingston department was placed on standby. A pond on the paper mill property was used as a water source in fighting the blaze. There were no reported injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation, fire officials said. Route 82 was down to one lane of alternating traffic in the area of the fire scene. The building, once known as the Ancram Iron Works, was turned into a paper mill in 1854 and it remains in operation today. It is the longest continuously operating mill in New York, as well as one of the largest employers in Columbia County, according to town officials. Read more at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.