It's hard to believe the McCrum fire was a year ago.

I literally remember when it was happening. I was on the air, and a friend started quickly sending photos of a fire in Belfast. She was saying her cousin lived pretty much across the street, and the whole factory seemed engulfed in flames. I think some of the pictures my friend's cousin took ended up in our article that day.

Employing almost 140 people, it was quite a blow to the town of Belfast, though the community kicked into high gear trying to help folks out who were all of a sudden out of work. And there were high hopes that plant would be back up and running as soon as possible, according to WABI. Sadly, those hopes are now gone.

The Belfast potato processing plant will not be reopening.

The news came down at the end of last week that the McCrum family will not be reopening the Belfast facility, as they've chosen to invest the money into their other facilities in Aroostook County. While as a matter of business it totally makes sense, many in Belfast have been hoping to return to their jobs, so 140 folks will now be permanently out of work, and need to find new jobs.

This will undoubtedly be a major blow to may residents and workers, but the town still seems optimistic for the future. The vibe doesn't seem to be one of let down, or being victims. The vibe seems to be one of resilience and finding a way to move on.

But this seems to be the end for this phase of Belfast. Hopefully those affected have either already moved onto to other things, or will be able to do so as quickly as possible. It's probably not a total shock that the plant won't return, but it's still a blow to the community, for sure.

Maybe this will help put a smile on your face today...

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