Firefighters and demolition crews work overnight as Camillus Cutlery factory comes down

Camillus, NY -- Demolition and fire crews worked overnight to extinguish a fire at the Camillus Cutlery factory that has burned since early afternoon.

The bulk of the massive fire was contained by 9:30 p.m., but Camillus Fire Chief Doug Groesbeck ordered the remainder of the building demolished to search for pockets of fire hidden by the collapsed structure.

The fire started at 1:20 p.m. when a portion of wall caught fire during demolition work inside. A worker escaped on his own.

More than eight hours later, two large backhoes ripped into the collapsed portion of the structure. As debris came crashing down, small flames appeared from the mangled skeleton.

Around 10 p.m., a Camillus police officer led a reporter through the fire scene to the area where the blaze started. All that remained was a pile of charred debris obscured by billowing smoke.

The fire began in the building's midsection. It traveled quickly throughout the century-old structure, consuming all three floors of the building near the fire's source. Further away from the fire's center, closer to Route 5 and Newport Road, there wasn't as much apparent damage.

About 50 feet separates the fire-ridden factory from another building that housed the company's office, showroom, packing facility and warehouse. That building was not damaged by the fire and is slated for renovation.

A bridge between the two buildings was demolished earlier Monday evening to keep the fire from spreading.

It was not clear how much of the factory building could be demolished overnight. A large portion of the third floor had completely collapsed, burying pockets of fire. A fire truck sprayed down the building to keep the fire at bay as the backhoes took it down.

Around 11 p.m., the backhoe uncovered a large pocket of fire and had to retreat until firefighters could extinguish it.

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Firefighters and demolition crews work overnight as Camillus Cutlery factory comes down