Massive R.I. mill fire forces evacuations

WOONSOCKET, R.I. — A massive, eight-alarm fire at a historic mill in northern Rhode Island forced evacuations and left hundreds without power, officials said late Tuesday.

Firefighters were called to the blaze at the former Alice Mills Rubber Manufacturing Plant in Woonsocket, just miles from the Massachusetts state line. Alice Mills was once considered the largest rubber goods factory in the world.

Firefighters responded to the blaze shortly after 7:30 p.m., and the fire quickly rose to eight alarms. Television images of the blaze showed the entire roof had collapsed into the 217,000 square-foot structure.

WPRI-TV said that one firefighter was injured and transported to a hospital. No other details were released and no other injuries have been reported.

Woonsocket police told The Associated Press that residents of about 10 houses on two streets surrounding the mill were evacuated.

At its peak, Alice Mills employed 2,000, and during World War II manufactured barrage balloons and rubber attack boats. The mill was later the home to plastic manufacturer Tech Industries, later known as Portola Tech, which left the building in 2009.

"It's enormous; the entire building is engulfed," Woonsocket Mayor Leo Fontaine told WPRI. "It's a very significant building historically for us."

Smoke from the blaze could be seen 10 miles away in Lincoln, R.I., and was being carried by the light wind into parts of Massachusetts.

Authorities said all of Woonsocket's 125 firefighters were on the scene, along with the city's police department. Nearby fire departments in Rhode Island and Massachusetts also sent firefighters.

Woonsocket is located 14 miles north of Providence and is two miles from the Massachusetts state line.