PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 13, 2025
It is not uncommon for firefighters to be called to Sappi’s Somerset Mill in Skowhegan a few times per year. The paper mill is a massive, industrial facility, with no shortage of combustible material on site. But a stretch of dry, hot weather has led to a recent uptick in fires at the mill on Waterville Road, according to company and fire officials, drawing in emergency resources from around the region to battle each blaze. In a typical year, the Skowhegan Fire Department is called to about three to five fires at the facility, Deputy Chief Ryan Johnston said. This year, the department has responded to nine or ten fires — with six or seven those in June, July and the first half of this month. “I attribute maybe 80% of it to the high heat and the lack of rain.”