ALBANY, Ore. – Firefighters battled a roof fire at the Arauco manufacturing facility for four hours on Friday evening, according to the Albany Fire Department.
AFD officials responded to the commercial structure fire at 2550 NE Old Salem Road at approximately 8:40 p.m. on July 10. The facility manufactures engineered wood products, including particleboard. Fire crews arrived to find active fire burning on the roof of the large industrial building. The fire was extending into several large air ducts within the facility. The size of the structure complicated fire suppression efforts. Challenges included safely accessing the fire area and extending hose lines long distances to reach the seat of the fire. Firefighters successfully confined the fire to its area of origin and the associated ductwork. This prevented further extension into the facility.
During the incident, the Albany Fire Department used an unmanned aerial drone equipped with an infrared camera. The technology identified hidden hot spots and helped crews direct extinguishment efforts, significantly improving firefighters’ ability to locate remaining areas of heat…