We got some real tired people," said Sterling Fire Department Capt. Ted Boddinger.
The firefighters were sent home at 5:10 a.m. Saturday, but some hot spots remained, Boddinger said.
"It was a long night last night," said firefighters with the Dixon Rural Fire Department, which assisted the firefighting.
Firefighters were back at the scene Saturday afternoon doing a survey where parts of the old six-story building were still smoldering.
"We couldn't get to some of the wood that was smoldering because it's under heavy steel plates," Boddinger said. "The rest of the day was pretty quiet. It gives us a chance to catch up."
Firefighters used thousands of gallons of water and they watched the water pressure closely to see that it didn't get under 10 pounds of pressure. Since the pressure never went below that point, Boddinger said there was no call to issue a boil order.
Water was not used from the Rock River because there wasn't an access to it, he said.
When sparks were flying across the downtown, several businesses were asked to be closed. In addition, the Union Pacific railroad was shut down so a line could be run across the tracks. The UP resumed service at 1:10 a.m. Saturday.
Sterling Mayor Ted Aggen said firefighters did an excellent job controlling the fire "because it could have gotten out of hand."
"I'm very pleased with the way they controlled it and the way the police department" cordoned off the downtown area and got the businesses closed.
"It went very smoothly," Aggen said.
Aggen couldn't say enough about the way other fire departments came to Sterling's aid and he was sure Sterling firefighters were pleased with the support.
The building is owned by Jeff Young of Morrison, who Aggen said had planned to rent out some warehouse space. Young was not available for comment.
Pete Dillon, whose family owned the mill until 1988, said Sterling lost some of the things that made the city great, but hopefully it will be gaining something in its place on the riverfront.
"There were many strong memories there. That's why thousands of people lined the banks of the river to watch it. ... I'm thankful no one was killed," he said.
When the Dillons owned the building, the mill had strict safety regulations regarding the cutting and welding of metal on the oil-soaked wooden floors. A watchman was assigned to carefully watch over the welding and metal plates were placed on the wood floor to make sure it didn't catch fire, Dillon said.
The mill was careful because one little mistake could have put 1,800 people out of work, he added.
There were previous fires at the location in the 1930s and a huge one in 1928.
Sterling was fortunate the wind wasn't stronger than it was and firefighters did an excellent job of containing the fire, he said.
A boat with a fisherman was anchored near the smoldering building this morning and several people watched from parked cars on the Rock Falls riverfront.
At a Sterling restaurant, the fire was a heated topic of discussion.
One diner said the flames could be seen as far away as Coleta while another was worried about all the tax money used to fight the fire.
Of the 17 departments which helped fight the fire, some sent as many as 10 to 12 people.
"Mabas, the mutual aid system, really worked for us last night," Boddinger said. "I'm thankful no one got hurt."
Since the unoccupied building was being demolished, Boddinger said firefighters during the night pulled back and went into a defensive mode.
The fire department was called out at 7:50 p.m. Friday. Earlier in the day, workmen doing the demolition at the mill were cutting metal with torches which started the blaze.
On Friday night, hundreds of people stood on street corners in Sterling and stood on the First Avenue Bridge watching firefighters battle the fire. Others crowded Lawrence Park and the lower dam area. Police were stationed at the major intersections to try to reroute traffic.
Sterling was assisted by fire departments from Rock Falls, Dixon (City and Rural), Morrison, Prophetstown, Milledgeville, Fulton, Lyndon, Erie, Mount Morris, Oregon, Rochelle, Harmon, Coleta and Tampico.
