Mentor Firefighters Squelch Fire at Business Complex

Mentor firefighters battled a smoky fire Tuesday morning in a business complex at 8634 Station Street.

One of the business owners discovered the fire when he opened the door to the building and saw the warehouse filled with smoke at about 7 a.m., Mentor Fire Battalion Chief Joe Busher said.

The fire started in an office for Sawmill Products Inc. Busher guessed that it was smoldering for a long time before it was discovered, judging by how much smoke it created.

"There was so much smoke, we didn't know at first if it was the whole warehouse or just a fire in the office," Busher said.

Even though the warehouse had a 20-foot-high ceiling, smoke still managed to fill almost the entire room. However, once inside, it only took the firefighters a few minutes to douse the fire in the office.

The fire never spread beyond the office but it caused about $150,000 worth of damage -- most of it from smoke -- to Sawmill Products and Kramer Printing, which share the building.

Busher said firefighters are investigating how the blaze started It may have been by an overloaded electrical circuit, he added. Busher noted that there was no evidence of arson.

Nobody was physically hurt because of the fire.