Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Bluefield, WV

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  • Members of the Athens Volunteer Fire Department battle a reignition of a fire on Barger Street in Matoaka Friday afternoon. The blaze, which gutted the structure, began before dawn. Although several apartments were destroyed by the fire, no one was injured. Staff photo by Jon Bolt

    Battling the blaze...

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February 4, 2012

Families lose homes to fire in Matoaka

By KATE COIL Bluefield Daily Telegraph

MATOAKA — Eight fire departments were called to the scene of a fire that destroyed one downtown Matoaka building and left a neighboring structure damaged Friday morning.

Chief Wayne Billings, of the Matoaka Fire Department, said crews were dispatched to the scene of a fire at Matoaka Laundry on Barger Street in downtown Matoaka at 5:07 a.m. Friday morning.

The laundromat had three apartments above it, all of which were occupied when the blaze began. Billings said all of the occupants were able to get out safely before crews arrived on scene.

“The building is going to be a total loss,” he said.

The blaze also caused damage to an adjoining building.

“There is damage to the building next door, Coal Software and Systems,” Billings said. “No one was in that building at the time. They hadn’t come in to work yet when the fire began. The fire has melted the building’s rubber roof to some extent and there is smoke and water damage to the building.”

By 10 a.m., Billings said the fire was still blazing to the point fire crews could not make entry to the original building.

“We haven’t gotten it knocked down enough that we can go in,” Billing said. “We will have to be able to get into the scene before we can conduct an investigation.”

According Deputy Chief S.A. Sommers with the Matoaka Volunteer Fire Department, the fire started in the back corner of the Matoaka Laundry building and spread from there.

In addition to the Matoaka Fire Department, the Montcalm Volunteer Fire Department, Green Valley-Glenwood Volunteer Fire Department, Bluestone Valley Volunteer Fire Department, Mullins Fire Department, Athens Fire Department, East River Volunteer Fire Department, and Oakvale Volunteer Fire Department all responded to the scene of the fire.

All of the departments except Matoaka had cleared the scene by noon after seven hours fighting the blaze. However the East River Volunteer Fire Department, Athens Fire Department, Oakvale Volunteer Fire Department, and Green Valley-Glenwood Volunteer Fire Department were called back to the scene when the fire rekindled around 2 p.m., according to Sommers.

Sommers said the back wall of the building began to crumble due to the blaze, and firefighters were stationed by the wall to prevent it from endangering a home directly behind the building.

They pumped more than 600,000 gallons of water on the blaze, Sommers said. Tanker trucks had to be brought in because there was not enough water left in the town of Matoaka to combat the blaze.

Fire crews were still on the scene late Friday evening.

According to Lashmeet Ruritan Club member Angie Foley, the Lashmeet Ruritan Club will be accepting donations on behalf of the three families who lost their homes in the fire.

“We understand there are five children between ages 1 and 10 who lived in the building, and the families lost everything,” Foley said. “Item donations are being accepted at the CASE room in the Matoaka Town Hall for the families.”

Foley said anyone wishing to donate can call 304-467-8096 to arrange for drop-off. Anyone wishing to send a financial donation should make checks payable to Lashmeet Ruritan, Attn:  Fire Donation and send it to P.O. Box 172, Lashmeet WV  24733.  

— Contact Kate Coil at

kcoil@bdtonline.com

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