Fire during thunderstorm in Tuscarawas Township causes estimated $300K in damage
TUSCARAWAS TWP. − A fire Thursday night destroyed the garage of Benmit Pipe and Tubing Services amid a thunderstorm, lightning, heavy rain and a tornado warning.
The fire caused at least $300,000 worth of damage, according to Jennifer Woodruff, owner and controller of the business at 14852 Lincoln Way W.
No one was injured or displaced from their home, said North Lawrence Fire Department Lt. Brandon Johnston.
"Our two guys on night shift were thankfully outside of the building when the fire started and they are safe," Woodruff wrote in an email.
Johnston said the Ohio fire marshal's office will send an investigator Friday to try to determine whether a lightning strike sparked the fire.
Due to the tornado warning, North Lawrence firefighters were at the fire station at 8:21 p.m., poised to respond to any storm damage.
What happened at Benmit Pipe and Tubing?
The fire was reported at 8:56 p.m. Firefighters arrived at 9:02 p.m. The 50-by-50 garage on fire was near the back of the property.
Firefighters positioned themselves to prevent the fire from spreading to an adjoining building where company employees had hunkered down during the tornado warning and thunderstorm, said Johnston. The employees reported hearing a loud boom and then seeing smoke coming from the garage.
The roughly 20 firefighters there had the fire under control by 9:36 p.m. They were doing cleanup operations just before midnight.
“Working during an active tornado warning isn't something we do every day," said Johnston, who added that firefighters had to go through thick mud being formed by the heavy rain.
Johnston said company employees told firefighters the fire destroyed not only the garage but tubing product that had been placed there to be painted.
The building that burned was three to four years old, and allowed the process to be moved indoors due to weather conditions, according to Woodruff.
"We do have another outdoor location for the coating process and will move to that until the rebuild is complete," she wrote.
Lawrence Township, Massillon, Brewster and Kidron fire departments sent tanker trucks, with Brewster deploying an additional engine truck.
"We want to express our gratitude to the North Lawrence Fire Department and the other departments that came to help," Woodruff wrote.
More than 2,300 electricity customers in Stark County were without power amid the high winds and rain that swept through in the evening. That number was down to 765 by 1 a.m. Friday.
Reach Robert at robert.wang@cantonrep.com. Twitter: @rwangREP.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: State to investigate whether lightning caused Tuscarawas Township fire
