The station is a storehouse for fire equipment. Wing's early account of lost inventory includes 10,000 feet of fire hose, $15,000 worth of portable pumps, 50 fire axes, 75 hard hats and headlamps, chain saws, shovels, motors and numerous nozzles and wrenches. Current files, stored in a separate office building on the property, were unharmed but archive files, containing old manuals and posters, were burned. Unit Ranger Sprague Wise manages 700,000 acres of the surrounding forest area and works from the Eustis office.
Originally a schoolhouse, the building was purchased from the state by the forestry division in 1947 for $100. Wing says not much was changed inside. "Except for removing the chalk boards and building a bunkroom upstairs, it pretty much stayed the same. Research shows school being held there before 1875 but we haven't been able to find records of when it was built."
The Forestry Service operates under the Maine Department of Conservation. Though the number one priority of the department remains fire control, the job description has evolved over the last 25 years to include many other duties. Forestry Rangers monitor all harvesting to make sure it's done legally, investigate timber theft, check woods roads construction, safeguard against stream siltation, and are closely associated with LURC and DEP, enforcing their rules. They also train fire departments.
The blaze is presently being examined by a Fire Investigator, aided by videos taken by Wing as the building burned. No decision has been made at this time as to origin of the fire. However, the building's primary source of heat is a wood stove. Risk Management insures the station and contents. Wing reports that, "We hope to rebuild in the same spot. Eustis is an ideal location."
