Trig's trucking and recycling facility in Rhinelander will be a total loss following a fire that forced responders to tear down the structure to treat hot spots inside.
The fire began toward the back of the building where the recycling center is housed according to Rhinelander Fire's Asst. Chief Tom Waydick.
The facility held compressed plastic and cardboard recyclables as well as bailing equipment and two semi-trucks.
Excavators were called to the scene to break the building apart to treat additional hot spots. Waydick confirmed that the adjoining bakery did experience smoke damage, but the extent is unknown. The bakery is currently closed and we did not receive any indication on when it will reopen. Waydick says over 100,000 gallons of water were used to extinguish the flames. Some of that water was taken from the city water supply. More water was pumped in from a nearby creek and from other agencies that responded.
Waydick added that the DNR will investigate whether any of the runoff that contained plastic or cardboard will affect the area. Waydick was not able to confirm the cause of the fire. According to Chris Kabacinzki, a former Trig's employee who called 911 about the fire, the blaze began just before 7 a.m. Sunday.
Initial WJFW TV story:
Fire ripped through the Trig's bakery and shipping building in Rhinelander on Sunday morning, damaging large portions and bringing in many firefighters. According to Trig's spokesperson Kindl Furtak, the fire was reported at the facility at 5070 Grossman Ave. on the city's southeast side before 7:30 a.m.
The building is just south of the Forest Home Cemetery. Furtak says the fire started in the trucking and storage section, not the actual bakery itself, although both sections are connected. Furtak said no one was hurt and no one was in the building at the time of the fire.
An Oneida County Sheriff's deputy told the reporter fire crews were still breaking up debris to check for any hot spots as of 10:45 a.m.
