Flames tear through a Warren County self storage business destroying several units. Fifty firefighters battled the flames early Thursday morning. They were able to bring the fire under control and keep it from spreading to other storage units. But Thursday night a lot of the people who had things stored there are disappointed.
For much of the day people streamed into the Stor-All on Montgomery Rd. They were checking on their belongings after an early morning fire destroyed several storage units. Rick Akers whose unit was damaged says, "We've just recently come through a move and we're still moving stuff in gradually. Just household items. Nothing of great value but at the same time it's stuff you don't want to lose in a fire."
Several people picked through charred furniture like couches and mattresses. Connie Reisenfeld took photos to document the damage. "It's upsetting. It's kind of devastating when you go back and look at all of your stuff burnt to a crisp," Connie tells us.
Around midnight Thursday, someone driving by saw flames shooting from the storage units and called 911. Twenty-eight units were damaged by smoke and flames. Connie Riesenfeld was one of the lucky ones, her unit contained patio and pool furniture. Connie says, "I felt lucky that we didn't have family photos or anything like an heirloom, something that wasn't replaceable. We're lucky in that aspect."
But Riesenfeld says replacing it could cost a lot since her insurance has a high deductible. As for Rick Akers, he's feeling lucky. He found only a small piece of burned rubber in his unit. While it has heavy smoke damage, the flames were stopped before charring his belongings. "I just feel fortunate and blessed to be better off than what some people are," Akers says.
The good news for some of these people is that their units are covered under their homeowners insurance policy. Neither management at the storage business nor fire officials will comment tonight on what possibly caused the fire. It is still under investigation.
Management for Stor-All would not talk on camera but did issue a statement. It reads in part: We're still working to assess the extent of the damage from the fire and minimize any further damage. Over the next few days we will continue working with our clients to help them recover from this unfortunate occurrence.
