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B&B Lumber, a pallet manufacturing company in Jamesville plans to resume operations by Thursday (February 27) after a significant fire on Monday night (February 24). The fire, which started around 7:30 p.m., saw more than 30 fire departments from three counties respond to the scene. The blaze lasted for over six hours, fueled by strong winds and a lack of nearby hydrants, which complicated firefighting efforts.
Firefighters used tanker trucks to ferry water to the site, and B&B workers even filled buckets with snow to help smother the flames until more water arrived. Despite the intense flames and challenges, no injuries were reported. The fire destroyed a storage building and part of the company's inventory, but the sawmill and most of the pallet assembly remained intact, according to a social media post by the company.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, and B&B Lumber has declined to comment further due to the ongoing investigation. B&B Lumber, founded in 1973, is located inside a quarry, accessible only by narrow roads. This is not the first time the company has faced such an incident; a similar fire occurred in March 2016.
Chief Dante Garofalo of the Onondaga Hill Fire Department noted to CNY Central that some areas continued to burn due to the number of pallets involved. Despite these challenges, the company expects to be fully operational by Thursday.