Massive fire burns in abandoned Seekonk building

SEEKONK, Mass. (WHDH) -- Firefighters battled a large fire at an abandoned mill in Seekonk on Tuesday morning.

The Attleboro Dye and Finishing Plant on Maple Avenue burned to the ground in the middle of a neighborhood Tuesday, where nearby residents awoke to the sight of tall flames and billowing smoke.

Firefighters had the flames under control by mid morning, but smoke continued to rise from the burnt-out shell of the building.

One woman, who said she was woken at around 4:30 a.m. by her barking dogs, looked out her window to see the fire. She said she heard a series of explosions that latest for at least an hour.

“We were a little nervous in the beginning, because we were afraid that, if it hadn’t been maybe overcast and damp, I was worried about the sparks coming up,” Kristen Deblasio said. “There’s two businesses, including the one we’re standing on, that have a lot of explosives, so -- in that case you worry about you house going up.”

Deblasio recorded video of the fire on her cell phone.

“From where we were standing, which was across the pond, you could feel the heat,” said Deblasio, a neighbor. “It was too hot to stand there. Stuff was coming down and it was exploding so my friend and I decided to run back up the hill.

For hours, neighbors listened to explosions as they watched thick black smoke and angry flames fill the sky.

The fire burned a 105,000-square foot industrial complex. The building was condemned and abandoned years ago.

“It is suspicious simply because the building was uninhabited legally and there were no utilities,” said Chief Alan Jack of the Seekonk Fire Department.

The fire chief said they have had trouble with people trespassing. Jack said the property was filled with junk cars and propane cylinders, which likely caused the massive explosions. The chief said size and location made it extremely difficult to fight the fire.

“The structure is extremely large and it’s inaccessible to one side, it borders the river. There were some issues because that’s where the fire started,” said Jack.

The building sits in the middle of a residential neighborhood. There was a fear that the fire would spread, but no other buildings were damaged.