Friday evening, members of the Nelson Volunteer Fire Department responded to a fire that broke out in a shop owned by Craig Corman. The shop is located on west Fifth Street, behind C&M Supply in Nelson. The fire restarted early Saturday morning, and once again volunteers responded. The Nebraska State Fire Marshall thought the fire was caused by a charger used to charge the battery on a hand tool. The extent of the monetary loss has not yet been determined. Photo by Tammy Thayer.
Members of the Nelson Volunteer Fire Department battle a fire in downtown Nelson which destroyed a building behind C&M Supply. The building is owned by Craig Corman.
It was after 10 p.m. Saturday when a dispatcher working in the Nuckolls County Sheriff's Office located on Nelson's East Fourth Street looked outside the office and saw flames leaping into the sky.
She wasn't sure of the location but surmised it was near what was once the Baldridge shop located east of the current C&M Supply service station. A former grain storage quonset obscured her view to the west.
The Nelson Volunteer Fire Department was paged out. They found a fire about a block northeast of their fire barn had engulfed a metal building owned by Craig Corman.
It was a hot, spectacular blaze that destroyed the building and its contents. Corman is currently operating a trucking business and the building constructed by Clay Meyers about 50 years ago served as the business shop.
The firemen were on the scene much of the night and returned again Sunday morning when a hot spot flared up.
All of Corman's tools along with truck parts and supplies were lost as was a semi-tractor in the shop having a new transmission installed and a 1968 pickup that was being restored.
The loss is only partially covered by insurance.
A Nebraska fire marshal was on the scene before daylight to investigate the cause of the fire. The fire marshal believes it was probably caused by a portable tool's recharging system.
The fire marshal's's office has also published the findings with regard to the fire at the Sacred Heart Church at Lawrence.
The marshal concluded the fire likely was caused by spontaneous combustion related to rags left in the building after the floor was stained.
Now that the investigation is completed, restoration of building has resumed. The first step in their restoration was the placement of dehumidifiers in the basement to begin drying out the building after it was soaked in the control of the fire.
It's been a busy week once again for area fire departments. The Lawrence Volunteer Fire Department was called to fight a corn field fire near Spring Ranch. The same afternoon the Superior Volunteer Fire Department was called to assist the Mankato department in fighting a barn fire in the White Rock Creek valley about a half mile west of Highway 14. And Nelson had the shop fire on Saturday night.
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