WABASH, Ind. – The Wabash Fire Department responded to a fire at a business at the corner of Carroll and Canal at 1657 on March 8, 2017. Upon arrival there were flames coming from the building, a lumber yard, and being fed by high winds from the west. Three other buildings in the area were threatened as well as electrical lines and phone lines. The Yarnelle Lumber building is a total loss, the YMCA had some damage, Inguard appeared to have smoke damage, and it is unknown whether the Honeywell Center sustained any damage.
Electricity to some of downtown was disrupted due to the fire damaging poles and their proximity to the fire being a danger to firefighters. They were disabled by Duke Energy for safety. The telephone lines were damaged but the extent is unknown. Our department was assisted at the scene by Noble Township Fire Department, Wabash County EMA, the Wabash Police Department, and the State Fire Marshal’s office; at our station by Urbana Fire Department, and Roann Fire Department covering Noble Township during the incident. All Wabash firefighters were requested at the scene. Wabash Fire Chief Barry Stroup said, “A special thank you to all of the citizens and business of Wabash for their support with water, Gatorade, coffee, pizza, and encouragement during the incident, it is greatly appreciated.”
“At this time I do not know an extinguishment time or have an estimate on damage. All crews were back in-service at approximately 0300. The Wabash City Fire Department is investigating the cause and origin of the fire which appears to have started in the southwest corner. At the time of this press release the cause of the fire is undetermined.”Wabash City Fire Chief Barry Stroup said.
