Downtown Bartow fire destroys two buildings

By SUZIE SCHOTTELKOTT
Published June 7, 2005

BARTOW - A fire early Monday devoured two historic office buildings on E Main Street in the heart of downtown Bartow and left some officials frustrated with the lack of resources to battle the blaze.

"We got the call early enough," said fire Chief Jay Robinson. "If we'd had the water pressure and the manpower, we could have contained this fire before it got out of hand."

Bill Pickard, the city's public works director, said the water lines downtown are large enough to accommodate the level of pressure firefighters needed.

"The lines they tapped into are 8-inch water lines," he said. "(The lines) should have taken care of this situation. ... It's something we're going to look into."

Authorities think the fire started in a back room on the second floor of the John J. Jerue Trucking Co. building at Wilson Avenue and Main Street, or 260 E Main. Investigators with the state Fire Marshal's Office were still looking for the cause late Monday.

Arson does not appear to be an issue, officials said.

The Lane Building next door, at 250 E Main, also was destroyed.

Fire crews from Winter Haven, Mulberry, Lakeland and Lake Wales helped Bartow and Polk County departments fight the fire.

Together, they confined it to the two buildings, sparing two structures on the west end of the block.

All four buildings date to the 1920s, Robinson said. "With all that old wood, fire just takes off," he said.

The first fire alarm came at 7:01 a.m. when a Jerue employee reported smelling smoke upon arriving for work.

Fire crews climbed the stairs to the second floor of the Jerue building and found flames in every direction.

Robinson said Bartow firefighters fought the fire as long as they could.

"They had to come out after about half an hour, at most," he said. "Their air tanks were running low. When they came out, we didn't have anybody else to send in."

Also, he said, "The roof was getting weak, and there were heavy air-conditioning units up there. If one of those fell through onto one of my guys, this helmet isn't going to help much."

Nelle Kennedy Stuart Terry, who owned both the burned buildings, said she was more concerned about the businesses than her personal loss.

"I'm insured," she said, "but I keep thinking about all those business owners and employees, and all their records and files. What are they going to do now?."

The Jerue trucking company leased space in the old Tate-Phillips building at 260 E Main five years ago, then expanded into the first floor a couple of years ago with the advent of Gateway Insurance.

Recently, John Jerue and his partners leased the ground floor of the building next door, at 250 E Main, and were in the process of remodeling it for Gateway Insurance.

Combined, the two companies employ about 60 people, Jerue said.

[Last modified June 7, 2005, 06:34:25]