Maine Fire Officials Believe Batteries Started the EPEC Fire in Orrington

Batteries are believed to have been a contributing factor to the fire at an Orrington waste plant.

Maine Fire Marshal Investigates Cause of Orrington Waste Plant Fire

As someone who lives in Orrington, I can tell you that a report of a fire at the building that houses the Eagle Point Energy Recovery Center is not unusual.

The business burns trash, and so small fires in the trash bin happen fairly often.

These are typically knocked down quickly.

Orrington, Maine Trash Plant Fire Brought in Mutual Aid from Multiple Towns

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But the fire that was reported after 9:00 pm on Tuesday night, June 16, 2026, was something bigger than residents had come to expect.

Firefighters came from multiple surrounding communities to help the Orrington Fire and Rescue team battle the blaze that sent toxic smoke into the air and over the city of Bangor.

Amazingly, the huge blaze was knocked down by 3 am on Wednesday, and most of the mutual aid departments were headed home by 6 am.

This was a much quicker turnover than the last fire at Eagle Point, which lasted 10 days in October 2024.

Maine Fire Marshal Says Batteries are Possible Cause of EPEC Fire in Orrington

According to the BDN, fire investigators discovered this month's fire began in the reclaim area, which is a 20,000 square foot area where trash is stored after it's sorted.

The State Fire Marshal's Office believes there may have been multiple items, such as batteries, that sparked the fire.

Orrington fire officials say the 40-year-old building doesn't have a fire alarm system, so they were unaware of the fire until residents began reporting seeing smoke from the building.

This fire remains under investigation.