THOMASTON — Phone calls to Knox Regional Communications Center began to filter in just prior to 6:30 p.m., and while Thomaston firefighters headed to the station, Thomaston police followed a long dirt road to the source of a large cloud of black smoke looming above the trees. 

The source of the fire they encountered, Thursday, Sept. 17, was identified as a large unattended debris fire burning heavily in "the pit" near 108 Beechwood Street, large enough to require a full response from Thomaston firefighters, plus additional requests for tanker trucks and personnel from Warren and South Thomaston. 

The Fire Marshal's Office has been notified.

Soon to arrive, the Thomaston fire chief laid out plans for which apparatus and personnel would follow the long, unlit, L-shaped drive, so narrow that firefighters walking on foot had to step into the brush to let the vehicles pass. 

As the calls for personnel were transmitted, Thomaston EMS happened to be at MaineHealth Pen Bay Hospital transferring care of a patient. Once finished there, they were called to Beechwood Street to stand by for any needs that might arrive on scene. An hour after those initial fire calls, their services were activated when someone assisting at the site, not an emergency responder, became injured. That person was taken to the hospital, and Rockland EMS was called to replace the Thomaston ambulance as a standby to firefighters. Half an hour or so later, when another medical call in Thomaston required an ambulance, South Thomaston was asked to take that call.

Reach Sarah Thompson at news@penbaypilot.com