CLARKWATCH: Follow news and updates regarding sanctions on Mayor Clark.

Fire devastates local business

May 24, 2018 | 5:36 PM

 

MEDICINE HAT – A local couple is devastated after losing their business in a fire Wednesday night.

JoDana Tokamp and Dustin Tizzard said they thought it was a prank when their phone started ringing and someone told them their business was burning.

The fire at Bamboo Innovations and Deadbolt Construction broke out Wednesday night just before 7:00 P.M. No one was working at the time.

The fire destroyed most of the building and its contents, the fire tore through the ceiling causing the roof to collapse.

“It’s a huge loss,” said JoDana. “It’s everything we’ve worked on for our small business from the ground up for over a decade just gone in one night, just watching it go. So yeah, it’s been very devastating.”

This wasn’t the first time their business has been dealt a devastating blow.

The business used to be in the Flats are of the city and during the 2013 flood, they lost all their product. They’ve also had to deal with other fires in the past too.

“Our very first building, when we first started out, had a fire on the other side from another company that took out our inventory,” JoDana explained. “And, our last building we were in, had an above ground flood and the roof collapsed.”

They’ve been able to come back from the losses every time, but JoDana said this loss will be harder to recover from.

“This one’s different. It’s not just our inventory, it’s our entire business,” she explained. “All of our equipment, our tools, we can’t function and basically everything’s gone.”

The couple does have insurance, but the process of settling the claim could take several months.

JoDana said they are waiting to see if anything can be salvaged from the wreckage of the building to keep their business going.