A huge fire in Hillsborough over the weekend incinerated historic Bellevue Mill.

Orange Rural Fire Department crews were called to the scene just before five o’clock on Friday. The roof of the historic mill collapsed less than an hour later.

Officials had the blaze contained just before 7:30.

Even though it was contained, crews continued fighting the fire overnight into Saturday.

Hillsborough Mayor Tom Stevens said he was impressed with how well the community handled the intense situation.

“Pretty amazing smoke, flames 40 or 50 feet in the air, I mean it was pretty scary for the nearby homes and residences,” said Stevens.

The building was unoccupied, and has been for several years. No injuries have been reported.

In total, eight different emergency crews responded to the fire. Stevens was impressed with how well they worked together.

“These guys just knew exactly what they were doing, they all worked together,” said Stevens. “First and foremost they protected the surrounding buildings to make sure it didn’t spread.”

Stevens said they were lucky that the fire was contained to the mill and did not impact any of the adjacent buildings or homes nearby.

“The wind just blowing a little bit could have had very devastating effects on that neighborhood, could have easily could have blown through South and to those business areas,” said Stevens.

A steady rain overnight on Saturday also helped the crews extinguish the fire.

State Bureau of Investigation is looking into the fire and Stevens said it will be some time before the cause is known.

The Bellevue Mill is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has been designated by the Hillsborough Board of Commissioners as a local historic landmark.

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