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Structure Fire at 1255 Port Terminal Drive

[DULUTH, MN] On Wednesday, May 20, 2026 at 11:35 AM, Duluth Fire Department was dispatched to the Altec facility located at 1255 Port Terminal drive for a report of a fire in the facility’s air filtration system. Altec staff initially kept the fire at bay with fire extinguishers until firefighters from Lincoln Park and downtown headquarters arrived on scene.

Altec staff safely self-evacuated and were able to execute a head count to ensure all staff were accounted for. A second alarm was dispatched as a precautionary measure due to the size of the facility. The fire stayed confined to the air filtration unit and firefighters were able to put the fire out with a single line. Production at the facility was halted for a few hours during the incident, but due to the fast response, staff were able to re-enter the facility and production was able to continue as usual by the afternoon.

At the time of the incident, a DFD was dispatched to a second simultaneous structure fire at the Trinity Lutheran Church on E Eighth Street. Firefighters found an electrical outlet with a small fire in the wall and were able to quickly extinguish it. Damage in that incident was minimal.

Firefighters from Headquarters, Lincoln Park, UMD, Spirit Valley, Duluth Heights, Morgan Park/Gary/New Duluth, Woodland, and Lakeside all participated in today’s incidents.

No injuries were reported in either incident. Damage to the Altec facility is estimated at $50K to $75K and the cause is under investigation by the Duluth Fire Marshal’s office.

Duluth Fire thanks its partners at Saint Louis County/911 Dispatch and Duluth Police Department for their assistance in the incident. Thanks also go to the staff at Altec for their exceptional emergency readiness.

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