HUNTINGTON — The Huntington Fire Department’s Fire Marshal’s Office has determined that a large structure fire in the 1400 block of 3rd Avenue on Nov. 24 was an accident.
The Fire Marshal’s Office investigation revealed that the fire was caused by gas vapors being ignited while a fuel system on a vehicle was being repaired at Wooten’s Garage, located at 1409 3rd Ave.
Huntington Fire Department units were sent to the working structure fire at Wooten’s at approximately 3:39 p.m. on Nov. 24. Additional units were immediately requested because of the large fire at Wooten’s and because it had spread to an apartment building on the west side of the garage. The fire destroyed Wooten’s, the apartment building, six vehicles and damaged a business on the east side of Wooten’s.
Two mechanics who were at Wooten’s at the time of the fire escaped without injuries and immediately notified authorities. The Fire Marshal’s Office investigation also revealed that Dickie Anderson, a retired Huntington firefighter who was at a nearby restaurant when the structure fire started, alerted seven people in the apartment building on the west side of Wooten’s. Anderson’s quick actions gave the occupants enough time to escape.