Robbins Lumber Explosion Injures 11 in Maine, Sending 10 to Burn Center
Updated
Updated · Press Herald · May 15
Robbins Lumber Explosion Injures 11 in Maine, Sending 10 to Burn Center
18 articles · Updated · Press Herald · May 15
At least 11 people were injured after a wood-shavings silo exploded at Robbins Lumber in Searsmont, Maine, igniting a large fire and injuring both firefighters and civilians.
Ten patients were being transferred to Maine Medical Center in Portland—the region’s only comprehensive burn facility—after initial treatment in Belfast, Rockport, Augusta and Bangor; one Bangor patient had been listed in critical condition.
Radio traffic from the scene described firefighters suffering significant burns after equipment caught fire, with responders calling for immediate help and reporting multiple fire trucks burning.
By about 5:15 p.m., large flames had been mostly knocked down and the smoke plume had thinned, though crews from across Midcoast Maine were still rotating through the scene and Route 131 remained closed nearby.
All employees were accounted for, but the blast hit one of the country’s largest white pine mills, a 225-employee company that also had a smaller 2024 fire and an OSHA fine in 2025.
With another mill disaster striking Maine, are the state's cornerstone industries becoming too dangerous for their communities?
After a previous fire, why did a dust silo at the historic Maine mill explode, injuring first responders?