CAMAS — Fire at Georgia-Pacific in downtown Camas brought more than 20 firefighters to the paper mill on Sunday morning.
The fire was in ductwork between a hopper and the No. 11 paper machine, said Acting Capt. Paul Bennett of the Camas Fire Department.
An official said Monday that no machines were damaged and there was no damage to the building in the flash fire.
Mill employees were working but no one was injured, Bennett said.
Fire broke out about 11:18 a.m.
“It was maybe a dust explosion … more like a blow torch and went across the ceiling of that structure and did activate all of the sprinklers inside that structure,” Bennett said.
“There were a large amount of mill workers on the scene,” he added.
The exact cause hadn’t been reported Monday evening, an official said.
The sprinkler system activated and employees used hoses on the area. There is firefighting equipment in the mill.
Firefighters stayed for about an hour to ensure the fire was quelled.
Bennett said two fire engines responded from both the Camas and Washougal departments and one engine each came from Vancouver and East County Fire & Rescue.
The mill, which operates around the clock, makes copy paper and paper towels, said Nancy Viuhkola, G-P community affairs coordinator. She said the mill has 525 employees.
