In mid-April a fire caused substantial damage at the Saratoga Sawmill in Wyoming. While no one was injured in the fire, it did result in damage of a reported 600 million board-feet of lumber. At the time of news reports fire investigators were trying to determine the source of the fire at the mill, one of the largest in Colorado and Wyoming operated by Saratoga Forest Management. Following several days of investigation it was determined that ashes from the boiler caused the fire, according to Mayor Ed Glode.

Now it’s business as usual for the sawmill thanks to the help the mill has received from surrounding communities. In addition to the lumber damage, 40 acres of the mill’s property also experienced damage.

According to Saratoga Forest Management partner Gary Ervin, following the fire the sawmill was left with 700,000 board feet. While the going is slow and the mill has been trucking out about 20% fewer logs each day, communities including Cheyenne, Douglas, Walden and others are bringing four to five loads of logs in on a daily basis. Ervin said this has helped keep production running, while approximately 100 employees returned on the Monday following the fire although working hours are currently eight hours per day instead of the 10 it was usually running business.

Ervin said that hopefully the sawmill will return to 10 hours per day by the end of May, but that it was hard to say because much of the logging depends on mud and when it may dry out.

According to the Saratoga Forest Management website the sawmill produces straight, strong framing lumber from Engelmann Spruce and Lodgepole Pine at its state-of-the-art processing mill.

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