A mass casualty incident was reported Friday in Searsmont, Maine, as emergency crews responded to Robbins Lumber and video showed a large fire at the facility. The state fire marshal’s office said it was responding to the scene.
Waldo County Dispatch reported the mass casualty incident, while a person who answered the phone at Robbins Lumber said there was a situation ongoing at the facility. Gov. Janet Mills said she had been briefed on the unfolding situation in Searsmont and urged people to stay clear of the area, follow law enforcement instructions and let emergency personnel do their work.
The World Health Organization describes a mass casualty incident as a sudden surge in patients that overwhelms the capacity of local medical resources. That definition underscores why the Friday report carried immediate weight, even as officials did not release further details about the number of people affected or the cause of the fire.
For now, the central fact is that emergency responders were dealing with a serious and active scene at Robbins Lumber, and state officials were asking the public to stay away. The next question is no longer whether the incident is real; it is how many people were affected and what investigators find once the fire is under control.
