Gretchen M. Putnam Eagle Tribune gputnam@eagletribune.com
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LAWRENCE — Another three-alarm fire hit Lawrence this morning, this time at an abandoned mill on South Canal Street.
The fire at the former Merrimac Paper Company brought in fire engine companies from a dozen communities — as far away as Ispwich and Danvers. No injuries have been reported, said acting fire Chief Brian Murphy.
"But with this weather, we are concerned (for firefighters)," Murphy said.
The fire was spotted at 9 South Canal St. by Lawrence firefighters returning from a different call about 9:32 a.m.
Engine 9 was returning from a search of the river after a report that somebody may have fallen in. The person was later found walking, but firefighters noticed smoke coming out of second floor windows of a storage building.
A second alarm was struck two minutes later. By 10 a.m., fire companies from Andover, North Andover, Methuen, Haverhill, Lowell, Middleton, Danvers, Amesbury, Dracut, North Reading, Ipswich and Salem, N.H. were in the city to help fight the fire or cover empty Lawrence station houses.
By 11 a.m., the fire was under control but fire crews were still on scene.
This is the second three-alarm fire in three days for Lawrence firefighters. Ten other communities were called in Friday for a fire that heavily damaged two cottage-style homes on State Street and left a dozen residents homeless.
Two dozen firefighters were laid off in Lawrence earlier this summer — cuts that have left the department dangerously undermanned, according to fire officials.
Before the recent layoffs, fires in the city would go to three alarms before mutual aid assistance was called in. But with the reduction in manpower available to fight fires, mutual aid is now called on the second alarm.
"Now we're relying on mutual aid on a regular basis and pretty soon these other communities aren't going to be looking on us too fondly," Murphy said today. "We need to get back to being adequately staffed. We have to get back there. We have to get back to it."
He said simply, "we're in trouble here in the City of Lawrence."
Pete Wilde, 52, of Dracut, said he came to the city for the second time in three days, concerned about the welfare of firefighters from his town.
"It's crazy," Wilde said of Lawrence's increased dependence on help from neighboring communities.
"What's happening here is affecting everyone's manpower. Just think how much it's costing the other towns. We're all looking for general assistance from the state right now. Every community's got budget problems. Helping out on fires likes this leave us stretched thin," he said.
According to Murphy, the Merrimac Paper complex has no sprinklers or fire detection equipment and has been labelled a "dangerous building" and is known to be a magnet for homeless. Vagrants are believed to have caused another three-alarm blaze at the same complex last November.
"And it will likely be the cause again this time," Murphy said.
Murphy said the building inspector was called to the scene to make sure "this owner is charged for violations of the property."
Merrimac Paper, which traced its roots in Lawrence back to 1866, closed for good on June 29, 2005, putting 75 employees out of work. The closure came just two years after the company had emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Merrimac manufactured paper products ranging from colored office folders to specialty pages used in books. It was purchased by Holyoke Card Co. in 2000.
