Firefighters battle mill blaze in Coldstream

COLDSTREAM – Firefighters remain at the scene of a large blaze that broke out inside a Coldstream lumber mill.

Coldstream fire chief Shane Code says they’re finally getting a hold on the fire after more than two hours. 

“We feel we’ve got a choke hold on it. We’ve stopped its advancement and we think we have it contained to the main building,” Code says.

The fire appears to have started inside Coldstream Lumber, located at the corner of Highway 6 and Ricardo Road, by a kiln operation around 9 a.m. Tuesday. Firefighters are now removing wooden pallets and other fuels from the area to stop the fire from spreading to other structures and the grassy area around the mill. 

Firefighters from Coldstream, Lavington and Lumby fire halls are on scene.

“Access is very difficult, it’s a narrow road and once we get a few vehicles in there it log jams it up,” Code says. “You can’t completely get around the building, so we have limited points of attack.”

The railway running alongside the mill also had to be shut down while crews battled the blaze.

One worker was sent to Vernon Jubilee Hospital due to smoke inhalation but all other employees got out of the building unharmed, Code says.

To contact the reporter for this story, email Charlotte Helston at chelston@infotelnews.ca or call 250-309-5230. To contact the editor, email mjones@infotelnews.ca or call 250-718-2724.

—This story was updated at 12 p.m. to add further information and again at 4:15 p.m. to add an additional photo.