A January fire caused extensive damage at the former Blue Heron Paper Mill in Oregon City. (Submitted by Clackamas Fire)

An arrest has been made in connection to the January fire at the former Blue Heron Paper Mill in Oregon City.

According to a press release, Oregon City Police Department detectives arrested 21-year-old Christian Gannon Dukes of Oregon City Thursday, June 12. He was charged with second-degree arson and lodged at Clackamas County Jail.

Crews initially responded to the fire at the old mill site, which is now owned by the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde, early in the morning Jan. 30. The size of the blaze and complexity of the site meant Clackamas Fire quickly upgraded the incident to a three-alarm fire to bring in additional resources. The fire was largely under control later that day, though an unstable roof prevented firefighters from entering the building and entirely extinguishing the blaze. Consequently the site continued to smolder and occasionally flare up for an extended period of time after the fire was controlled. The Grand Ronde hired contractors to begin demolishing the building in late February.

The fire was originally believed to have been caused accidentally by people using a warming stove at the site. That changed after witnesses were interviewed, according to police.

“Police detectives were able to identify several people who were living at the site and located them for interviews. Through the course of their investigation, a suspect was identified and interviewed,” the press release stated.