SKOWHEGAN — An equipment failure caused a fire that was quickly brought under control at the Sappi paper mill on U.S. Route 201 Thursday morning, according to officials.

The failure sparked a grease fire at 10:30 a.m. that “spread rapidly” in the dust and wood chips throughout the wood room, which was located in a wood yard on the property, according to Capt. Michael Savage of the Skowhegan Fire Department. He didn’t know what piece of equipment had failed.

Pulp trucks loaded with wood enter an entrance to SAPPI mill in Skowhegan a short time after a fire was reported at the mill on Thursday. Staff photo by David Leaming

Sappi has an emergency response team that put out most of the fire before firefighters arrived at the scene, Savage said.

“We just helped mop it out and put out the hot spots,” he said. The building wasn’t damaged, as it’s a metal frame with metal siding.

No one was injured in the brief fire, and the fire department cleared at 12:30 p.m.

Madeline St. Amour — 861-9239

mstamour@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @madelinestamour