Tenants of a self storage facility in Morgantown, West Virginia were horrified to find out that a fire recently damaged several self storage units. Thirteen units at the Route 10 Self Storage facility located in the Cumru Township were either badly damaged or severely destroyed by a fire in early December. The fire caused Morgantown road to be closed for well over five hours while police and firefighters responded to the incident.
The fire was discovered by a tenant at around 5:45 a.m. after he entered the gated complex to access his unit. According to Rover Synder, the assistant chief of the Cumru Township Fire Department, volunteer firefighters were needed to assist with opening burning self storage units. While the facility manager was able to provide keys for most units, firefighters had to eventually cut open the metal doors in order to get access to units. Despite the extensive damage to the self storage facility, no injuries were reported.
Firefighters were able to get the blaze under control in about two hours and remained on the scene to assist with the investigation and cleaning up of the area. The source of the fire has yet to be determined and the estimated damages so far total $200, 000.
According to a quote in the Reading Eagle, “All fires in storage units have their own unique risks,” Synder said. “It does require a fair deployment of manpower and equipment to be able to contain it.
“Also, there are all the hazards of the contents themselves to worry about. We had to deal with the storage of propane and things people had stored for business. It raises difficulty significantly.”
Firefighters from Kenhorst, West Reading, Shillington, and Mohnton fire companies and Spring Township and Exeter Township fire departments all came out to assist those in the Cumru Township.
Managers of the self storage facility are waiting on the insurance appraisals for the amount of the total loss based on the contents of the self storage facilities that were affected. The loss comes at the time when many people are preparing for the holiday season. We hope all those affected will soon recover their losses and that this does not dampen their spirits during the holiday season.
