No Charges Expected In Cache Valley Storage Unit Fire
Jun 17, 2019, 6:52 PM | Updated: Jun 18, 2019, 7:17 am
NIBLEY, Utah – Rusty Jenson is among the dozens of renters who lost belongings in a storage unit fire Saturday. The larger units, on the south end of Armor Storage, in some cases housed some expensive items, like boats, RVs, and side-by-sides. Jenson estimates his losses at around $80,000.
“We’re actually in the process of building a new home, so all of our appliances and stuff was in there,” Jenson said. “Just aggravating, because they were told time and time again that they had people working out of here, an automotive shop that is against their policy.”
Jenson says that he and several other renters there had warned the management of Armor Storage that some men had been running an apparent auto repair shop out of one of the units. Jenson says when he saw the smoke and flames, he figured that was the cause of the fire.
“Once we saw the flames and how hot it was burning, we knew it was probably over,” Jenson said. “I feel they are liable, because they didn’t take care of the problem when it was brought up.”
Hyrum City Assistant Fire Chief, Blake Christensen says the fire started when a man, working on a car there, attempted to jump start it with the help of ether; a very flammable chemical. The man suffered some minor burns. Lynn Forsberg says his nearly-new RV trailer was singed in the fire.
“If it’s totaled, it’s about a $35,000 loss for me,” Forsberg said.
Jason Crook says he lost big too. In addition to recreational vehicles, furniture, books, marriage licenses, and birth certificates burned too.
“You figure this is a safe place, as if it was your home, and then to come here and see this,” Crook said. “Technically in the lease says only for storage. It doesn’t say you try to make a living, or subsidize your livelihood by working out of a plywood-sided building.”
Crook, Forsberg, and Jenson are all extended family, and all say they are working with the same attorney.
“(This) should have never happened,” Crook said. “If people just stored their stuff, this couldn’t have happened.”
A manager at Armor Storage of Nibley declined to comment on the story, and said they are waiting to see what investigator reports reveal about the fire.
