Bill Kiene semi-retired
08-08-2006, 11:46 AM
Three feared dead in Fort Smith fire
By MIKE STARK
Of The Gazette Staff
Three people are presumed dead in a fast-moving fire that destroyed several businesses and two vehicles early Sunday in Fort Smith.
The fire, reported just before 2 a.m., burned the Bighorn Trout Shop, a connected diner, portions of a nearby lodging complex and the Yellowtail Market, according to witnesses.
“There’s nothing left but wire racks in those stores and the foundations and the chimney flue,” said Duane Schreiner, owner of Bighorn Fly and Tackle in Fort Smith, which was not damaged. “They literally burned to the ground.”
Matt Redden, Bighorn County’s fire warden, said late Sunday that three people who were staying at the hotel were not accounted for and presumed dead. Their names and hometowns were not released but Redden said they were not locals. The county coroner was called to the scene Sunday. The fire is being investigated by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the Bighorn County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Redden said.
The cause of the fire, which apparently started at the hotel, was still under investigation.
Dale Davisson, a volunteer with the Fort Smith Volunteer Fire Department, got a call around 1:50 a.m. Sunday. Davisson, who lives nearby, saw flames tearing through the motel and a car parked behind it. Once the fire was burning through the cedar shingles, it took off quickly.
“All the sudden it just went,” he said.
Nearby, a 250-gallon propane tank with its top blown off was venting bursts of fire high into the air.
“About every 10 minutes it would bust off and shoot flames,” Davisson said.
He checked with a business owner to see if anyone was still inside the building and then reported to the fire truck, knowing it couldn’t roll until there were at least three firefighters aboard. By the time he returned to the scene, the fire had reached Bighorn Trout Shop.
Initially about five to 10 people were fighting the fire. Later there were about 30 to 40 people gathering water from the water tower and irrigation ditches and trying to get the flames knocked down. A few times, firefighters thought they had the fire under control only for it to flare up again.
Schreiner was called around 3:30 a.m. As he arrived from Hardin, he could see a thick layer of smoke drifting from Fort Smith. By the time he arrived as the sun was coming up, the three buildings were a blackened mess of rubble.
“It’s got to be a devastating blow to them,” he said.
He estimated the lodging complex next to the trout shop lost about eight of its units. Another wing with about nine or 10 rooms didn’t burn, he said.
“I talked with a few of the guys from the hotel. They said the fire moved remarkably fast,” Schreiner said.
The loss of the Bighorn Trout Shop, one of three flyfishing shops in Fort Smith, and the other buildings is difficult for the small community, he said.
“What was a half a city block is actually gone,” he said.
The close-knit residents will pull together to do whatever’s needed for those who lost their businesses and buildings, he said.
The Bighorn Trout Shop, owned by Steve Hilbers and Hale Harris, opened in 1985 specializing in float trips down the Bighorn River, according to the company’s Web site.
The Yellowtail Market opened several years ago and is owned by Chad and Brenda Fenner, Schreiner said.
Officials from the investigating federal agencies and the Bighorn County Sheriff’s Department could not be reached Sunday evening.
Further details about the cause of the fire and the full extent of the damage were not available Sunday night.
Contact Mike Stark at mstark@billingsgazette.com or 657-1232.
Published on Monday, August 07, 2006.
Last modified on 8/7/2006 at 8:44 am
By MIKE STARK
Of The Gazette Staff
Three people are presumed dead in a fast-moving fire that destroyed several businesses and two vehicles early Sunday in Fort Smith.
The fire, reported just before 2 a.m., burned the Bighorn Trout Shop, a connected diner, portions of a nearby lodging complex and the Yellowtail Market, according to witnesses.
“There’s nothing left but wire racks in those stores and the foundations and the chimney flue,” said Duane Schreiner, owner of Bighorn Fly and Tackle in Fort Smith, which was not damaged. “They literally burned to the ground.”
Matt Redden, Bighorn County’s fire warden, said late Sunday that three people who were staying at the hotel were not accounted for and presumed dead. Their names and hometowns were not released but Redden said they were not locals. The county coroner was called to the scene Sunday. The fire is being investigated by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the Bighorn County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Redden said.
The cause of the fire, which apparently started at the hotel, was still under investigation.
Dale Davisson, a volunteer with the Fort Smith Volunteer Fire Department, got a call around 1:50 a.m. Sunday. Davisson, who lives nearby, saw flames tearing through the motel and a car parked behind it. Once the fire was burning through the cedar shingles, it took off quickly.
“All the sudden it just went,” he said.
Nearby, a 250-gallon propane tank with its top blown off was venting bursts of fire high into the air.
“About every 10 minutes it would bust off and shoot flames,” Davisson said.
He checked with a business owner to see if anyone was still inside the building and then reported to the fire truck, knowing it couldn’t roll until there were at least three firefighters aboard. By the time he returned to the scene, the fire had reached Bighorn Trout Shop.
Initially about five to 10 people were fighting the fire. Later there were about 30 to 40 people gathering water from the water tower and irrigation ditches and trying to get the flames knocked down. A few times, firefighters thought they had the fire under control only for it to flare up again.
Schreiner was called around 3:30 a.m. As he arrived from Hardin, he could see a thick layer of smoke drifting from Fort Smith. By the time he arrived as the sun was coming up, the three buildings were a blackened mess of rubble.
“It’s got to be a devastating blow to them,” he said.
He estimated the lodging complex next to the trout shop lost about eight of its units. Another wing with about nine or 10 rooms didn’t burn, he said.
“I talked with a few of the guys from the hotel. They said the fire moved remarkably fast,” Schreiner said.
The loss of the Bighorn Trout Shop, one of three flyfishing shops in Fort Smith, and the other buildings is difficult for the small community, he said.
“What was a half a city block is actually gone,” he said.
The close-knit residents will pull together to do whatever’s needed for those who lost their businesses and buildings, he said.
The Bighorn Trout Shop, owned by Steve Hilbers and Hale Harris, opened in 1985 specializing in float trips down the Bighorn River, according to the company’s Web site.
The Yellowtail Market opened several years ago and is owned by Chad and Brenda Fenner, Schreiner said.
Officials from the investigating federal agencies and the Bighorn County Sheriff’s Department could not be reached Sunday evening.
Further details about the cause of the fire and the full extent of the damage were not available Sunday night.
Contact Mike Stark at mstark@billingsgazette.com or 657-1232.
Published on Monday, August 07, 2006.
Last modified on 8/7/2006 at 8:44 am