Adman Printing, a Corning, California-based printer and distributor, erupted in flames early Sunday and suffered extensive damage before the fire was brought under control by firefighters.
The fire was reported at 10:12 a.m. Sunday morning, and the building was fully engulfed in flames by the time the fire department arrived.
Five fire trucks and 27 firefighters were deployed before the blaze was finally contained at 2 p.m. Most of Adman Printing’s building was destroyed, with the Corning Fire Department estimating damage to the business at approximately $140,000. Adjacent businesses received superficial damage but did not catch fire.
No one was in the building at the time of the blaze and no injuries were reported. Owner Steve Turner and his wife Michelle were out of town when they received a call about the fire from their daughter.
The blaze is believed to have started either in the rear of the structure or in an alley alongside the building. KRCR News is reporting that investigators are looking into claims that someone was seen leaving the area at the same time the fire started.
“There have been reports someone was seen walking away from the area right before the fire started,” Michelle Turner told the Corning Observer. “I think it may have been started on accident by someone throwing down a cigarette or something like that. I hope it wasn’t intentional.”
Authorities are still investigating what could have caused the fire. “There’s chemicals, a lot of equipment, a lot of the back area was used for storage,” said fire chief Martin Spannaus. “We had to move a lot of the equipment and other items inside the print shop’s warehouse, back in the alleyway, in an effort to save structures on either side of the building. That makes it especially difficult to pinpoint the exact location where the fire started and what may have started it.”
Steve Turner, who has owned the building and Adman Printing for nearly 22 years, said he had been making plans to sell the business prior to the fire.
