Calls reporting a woods fire in Otisfield on July 12 morning came fast and from all different directions and altitudes.

The fire was first reported at 9:43 a.m. to Oxford County Regional Communications Center by an Otisfield resident on Scribner Hill Road, while other calls were from people around town who saw the smoke. 

The Green Mountain Fire Tower in Effingham, NH, radioed a report, and one even came from a jetliner flying overhead as the flames spread from a 100- by 100-foot area to two acres and then to more than five acres.

Response at the scene was immediate and grew with the same intensity as the flames: 18 rural fire departments and other agencies spent 12 hours fighting the wildfire.

Otisfield’s Deputy Fire Chief Ryan Fox was the first to arrive, with Casco fire trucks coming in about the same time. 

Between the two departments Fox immediately set five firefighters to staging the fire, but even with more personnel and equipment from Raymond and Naples joining the effort he knew they needed more resources.

“It was (already) too much for the crew we had,” Fox said during an interview two days later. “Between the heat and dry conditions, and the terrain, it was difficult to attack.”

The burning hill had skidder trails but was too steep for apparatus to access.

Other departments were called from Oxford, Norway, Paris, Waterford, Lovell, Sweden, Windham, Poland, Mechanic Falls, Minot, Auburn, Baldwin, Bridgton and Harrison.

Otisfield Fire Chief Kyle Jordan said more than 75 firefighters were involved.

Fire investigators have listed the cause of the fire as undetermined; Jordan said the ground was too trampled and marked up for a definitive finding. 

Although one of the very first calls was made by a resident who said they could see the flames from their house, no homes or other buildings were endangered by the blaze.

It wasn’t just area firefighters who answered the call.

The Maine Forest Service provided a helicopter to drop water collected from nearby Pleasant Lake, and later added two forest rangers to help on the ground. 

MaineHealth EMS sent two ambulances and EMTs to provide medical care, treating two firefighters for heat exhaustion.

Over the course of the day Polly’s Variety in Oxford would send 90 sandwiches and seven pizzas, along with nine cases of water and Gatorade. 

Residents did their part as well, bringing a continuous flow of water and snacks to the scene.

Everett Construction of West Paris hauled in a large excavator during the afternoon to dig a break around the site, working until 10 p.m. and continuing for several more hours Monday.

“Having the helicopter was big,” Jordan said. It dropped 16 loads of water from above and helped those on the ground gain the upper hand. “The crews worked really, really hard to suppress the fire and they did a phenomenal job. 

“They went at it with hand tools, and chain saws, hauling backpack water tanks and 1,000 feet of hose up that steep hill. Guys were going up and down with UTVs, transporting firefighters in and out and bringing in food and drinks.”

Polly’s Variety owner Lisa Annance said compared to the pressure fire crews faced, for her and the two working in the store it was just a typically busy day.

Otisfield Selectman “Brandon (Bedell) called to ask if we could make 50 sandwiches,” Annance said. “And an hour later they needed even more. We didn’t let them pay for it. We were able to work around our regular business all day.”

One ordering customer pitched in extra money to help cover it. “I’d like to thank the anonymous person who did that,” she said. “We weren’t overtaxed with the extra work. We’re used to handling large orders. The only worry I had was running out of rolls, but we had enough.”

Fox commanded the scene from his arrival until about 3 p.m. when Jordan relieved him. With the arrival of the excavator some of the focus shifted to anticipating hot spots starting new fires.

“With a woods fire in these dry conditions, it actually burns down into the root system,” Fox explained. “It’ll travel underground and if it’s following a root that goes to the surface, that’s where the fire comes out.”

“We were able to shift to mop-up operations,” Jordan added. “Firefighters use hand tools and water tank backpacks to extinguish the hot spots. And the excavator ditches a firebreak around the incident area to dig out roots and expose good ground the fire won’t cross.”

Jordan cleared mutual aid companies from the scene around 8 p.m. Otisfield firefighters and the excavator operator continued working until 10 p.m. when they were confident no new fires would emerge.

Upon their return Monday at 7 a.m., his crew extinguished just a few suspect hot spots and Everett Construction completed the firebreak before noon.

Jordan reiterates the need to be cautious with outdoor fires. “Conditions remain very dry.

“The state monitoring system takes weather into account when they set fire danger levels. The conditions may be called moderate, but just because you can burn by law, doesn’t mean you should. Yesterday (Tuesday) for example, was supposed to rain but it never came.”

“Thank you, to all the mutual aid departments and our community,” Fox said. “Mutual aid is what these towns all rely on. Years ago this might have been a two-town fire. But the manpower pool has become so thin. And the donated manpower, neighbors helping and getting water and food to the scene for us was key. We appreciate it.”

“We were fortunate to have little wind Sunday,” Jordan said. “The humidity added a bit of moisture to the air. “But luck had no part in suppressing this fire. It was people, working very hard on the ground, that put it out.”