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There was no structural damage to the building and no one was hurt.
Jim Thompson of Spectrum Painting, said his crew arrived to make a bid on repainting the building’s interior and saw 30-foot flames.
“We couldn’t get it out, so I called 911,” he said.
Thompson said a demolition crew from another company was using a torch to tear apart an old paint booth used for painting cars. The torch may have ignited dried paint near the bottom of the booth, he said.
The exact cause of the fire had yet to be determined, said Winona Fire Chief Ed Krall.
Thompson said he and other workers tried to put out the flames with a fire extinguisher, but called the fire department when it got to be too much.
Krall said everyone got out of the building. When the fire department arrived, the fire was still burning and black smoke made it impossible to see inside the building. Krall credited the building’s sprinkler system for holding the flames in check until firefighters could put it out.
“The sprinkler system saved a lot,” he said.
Butch Walz, co-owner of the building at 121 Huff St., complimented the fire department’s quick response for preventing any structural damage. Walz said he doesn’t think the fire will impede plans to open the Chrysler Winona dealership in the space by December.
The building has been vacant since Underdahl Toyota moved out in January. It served as temporary headquarters for the Red Cross and as a supply station after the Aug. 18-19 floods.
Contact Kevin Behr at kbehr@winonadailynews.com or at (507) 453-3524.
