A saw mill fire in Lookout Valley on Sunday morning caused $185,000 in damage.
At approximately
7:45 a.m., calls began coming into Hamilton County 911 about a fire in a saw mill at 3510 Pan Gap Circle in Lookout Valley. Smoke could be seen from downtown Chattanooga when firefighters from Station One on Main Street began to respond.
Upon arrival it was determined that the building was approximately half a mile off Pan Gap Circle and that the driveway was a narrow, gravel road. Because it was in a secluded area and because of the time of day, the fire had gone unnoticed for quite some time. Before Chattanooga Fire Department personnel made it to the scene the building was already engulfed in fire and had collapsed.
Firefighters with S20, Brush Truck 20, Q3, Tanker 3, Q14, Q1, Q2, and S1 responded to the scene. None of the fire trucks was able to drive on the gravel road except Tanker 3 and Brush Truck 20. Tankers and brush trucks are strategically placed in fire stations around the city as a backup water source for more rural parts of the area. Both Tanker 3 and Brush Truck 20 were able to make it down the road to the building and were used to extinguish the fire.
The owner of the building, Rick Lowery, said that the building was used as a saw mill and a general maintenance shop. Two vehicles were destroyed along with a variety of equipment and tools. There were no civilian or firefighter injuries reported.