Early morning fire destroys commercial building in Dalton; 15 departments battle blaze
DALTON – A commercial building was destroyed by a fire that sent flames shooting in the air along with thick, billowing smoke during the early morning hours.
East Wayne firefighters battled the blaze Wednesday at Len Zermenos in the 15000 block of Old Lincoln Way through the night and were still at the scene at mid-mo. checking for hot spots among the smoldering embers.
Furnace on the move: Dalton manufacturer sends largest delivery yet, 35-ton furnace to Kentucky
Firefighters were called at 12:01 a.m., said Assistant Chief Jonathan Downs. They were assisted by 14 other fire departments across Wayne and Stark counties.
No injuries were reported.
State fire marshals are investigating the cause, Downs said. It remains unclear how the fire started.
Zermenos is a family-run business that makes rollbacks for tow trucks, according to its website.
The structure sits behind the owners' home, which did not appear to be damaged by the blaze. Neighboring homes appeared to be undamaged as well.
Despite the damage, business will go on
President and Office Manager of Len Zermenos, Sandra Zermenos, was watching a movie in her home office late Tuesday night when the fire started.
To Zermenos, it seemed like any other night, so when her husband knocked on her door, she responded like she always did.
"I said that I would be in bed soon," Zermenos said. "But then he said that someone was pounding on our front door."
It was their neighbor, who came to alert them to the blaze.
When Zermenos walked outside, she saw flames shooting through the roof of the structure, she said. As fire crews arrived, she could only think of how after nearly 23 years of building their business, it was burning to the ground.
"I thought, 'Oh Lord please; there has to be a reason for this,'" Zermenos said.
For 23 years, the couple saved money for the next addition, she said. They built up from a small two-car garage to the warehouse-sized structure where rollbacks were made.
"We had it all set up like this for about one year now," she said. While the original garage is undamaged, all that remains of the main facility is the front wall.
Additional structures that lined the sides of the property were largely undamaged aside from melted siding.
Vehicles that lined the front of the property were saved, she said, but two vehicles inside of the facility along with tools and equipment were lost in the blaze.
Despite the hard-hitting loss, Zermenos said, business will go on.
The family owns a nearby facility that houses tools and equipment where her six part-time and six full-time employees will work.
Reach Bryce by email at bbuyakie@gannett.com
On Twitter: @Bryce_Buyakie
This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Dalton business, Zermenos, destroyed by early morning fire
