Fire at paper mill property in northern Michigan closes roads, prompts warning to avoid area

CHEBOYGAN, Mich. (AP) — A fire at a northern Michigan paper mill has closed several roads and prompted city officials to tell residents to shelter in place, while state police warned people to stay away from the area. Plumes of thick and heavy black and gray smoke billowed Wednesday from the Tissue Depot property along M-27 in downtown Cheboygan, about 290 miles northwest of Detroit. The nearby Cheboygan Lock and Dam was temporarily closed. The City of Cheboygan posted on its Facebook page for residents to also shut all windows. Michigan’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy spokesman Jeff Johnston says staff were sent to Cheboygan Wednesday afternoon “to help assess the situation.” Authorities believe the fire was in a warehouse on the property.