he Grand Island Rural Fire Department, with the assistance of other area fire departments, responded to a fire at the Grand Island Saddle Club at Kuester Lake at about 5:30 a.m. Thursday. Fire Chief Chuck Hoffman said the fire started on the outside of the building and burned up the outside of an exterior wall, extending into the attic area of one of the east wings of the building. “It involved portions of the attic area there,” Hoffman said. “It did not enter in to the actual serving area. It was above the ceiling in the attic.” He said the fire caused major structural damage to the roof rafters and the roof itself. “It burned through several of the rafters of the roof in that area after it got in,” Hoffman said. He estimated that about 85 percent of the Grand Island Saddle Club structure didn’t have any damage. “The fire was in the attic area of one wing of the building and they will be able to isolate that area,” Hoffman said. The cause of the blaze is still under investigation. But Hoffman said it was an accidental fire. “We are relatively sure that we have a handle on what caused the fire, but we still want to talk to some people,” Hoffman said. He said they wanted to find out what was occurring in that area of the building. “The cause of the fire didn’t have anything to do with the utilities of the structure,” he said. Hoffman said the structure has an automatic alarm system. “The alarm system picked up the smoke from the fire and notified the 911 center,” he said. Hoffman said along with Grand Island Rural Fire Department, engine companies, water supply tankers and manpower from fire departments in Chapman, Doniphan, Alda and an engine company from the Grand Island Fire Department responded. He said there were no injuries as a result of the fire, but cold weather and snow and ice on the roof of the structure made conditions challenging and hazardous. According to the National Weather Service in Hastings, the temperature around the time of the fire was 10 degrees, with a west wind at 7 mph resulting in a wind chill of minus 1. “It made it tough because we had to work on the roof,” Hoffman said. “The roof was covered with snow and also it was a shake-shingled roof. We had to be careful of collapse. We also had to be careful because the roof was covered with snow and ice. When you put people on the roof, you have to be sure that you follow your safety procedures. Make sure they have a ladder to work off of.” Hoffman said they enclosed the building so it can remain heated and so the utilities could still be accessed. He said there may be some smoke odor in the building, but there was no smoke damage to most of the building other than the attic where the fire was located. “We certainly would urge anyone to make sure that their smoke detectors are kept current with the batteries and that they test them because the detection system saved this building,” Hoffman said. The Saddle Club was closed on New Year’s Day, but will be open Friday. Follow Robert on Twitter or find him on Facebook and Google Plus. More about Saddle Club More about Grand Island Rural Fire Department More about Chuck Hoffman Discuss Print Posted in Local on Thursday, January 1, 2015 5:04 pm. | Tags: Saddle Club, Grand Island Rural Fire Department, Chuck Hoffman,
Posted on: Fri, 02 Jan 2015 01:48:49 +0000
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