Firefighters responded to a report of smoke at Yo’ Mama’s Pizza the afternoon of Sept. 26.
“Upon arrival, we found a fully charged building full of smoke,” Fire Chief Dean Gray said. There were no flames visible from outside the structure, located at the corner of 12th Avenue and Highway 20. There was a small fire burning between the dining room and ovens in the counter area.
The business had recently been sold to Jean Halbrook, whose son was going to operate the business. The building is owned by Dr. Ronald Hartmann.
The contents of the building had not yet been insured, Chief Gray said. Fire crews extinguished the flames and checked in the attic and crawl spaces, which are shared with neighboring businesses in the building.
The Country Store crafts and antique store, next door, suffered smoke damage, Chief Gray said, the fire itself did not extend past Yo’ Mama’s Pizza.
“We had some very serious potentials in the fact that the buildings share a common crawl space and attic,” Chief Gray said. The fire had not had time to ventilate, or it likely would have spread to other areas in the building.
The building is salvageable, Chief Gray said. It suffered an estimated $40,000 to $50,000 of damage. Lost contents were estimated between $10,000 and $20,000. The potential loss on the fire was more than $1 million for the entire structure and contents.
The probable cause was a cigarette, Chief Gray said. Persons had been in the building working earlier in the day. The fire started near the area where the cash register sits. The fire started on a counter, and there were no other sources of ignition.
The fire itself was a smoky, smoldering fire, Chief Gray said. Fires starting as a result of lit cigarettes smolder and build up heat, generating a lot of smoke. The fire probably smoldered between three and four hours. It is not uncommon for a cigarette fire to smolder up to six or seven hours before taking off.
No one was in the building at the time of the fire, and there were no reported injuries.