Roof-top torch. The first that owner Andy Todd realized the building was ablaze was about 10 p.m. when he he drove up and saw flames lighting the sky froom from the kitchenc himney. The flames are kong gone but not the aluminum chimney still reigns.
Flames sneaked up a backside wall to attic
CENTERVILLE, Wis. – A cigarette caused the fire that destroyed the Toad’s Cove convenience store Memorial Day weekend, owner Andy Todd said. Surveillance video showed someone dropping a cigarette in an outback ashtray. To no one’s knowledge at the time, the cigarette failed to self-extinguish. Smoke from the ashtray showed in the video around 8:45 p.m., followed flames climbing into the building’s attic. It was a whole hour later that a customer rushed in and altered the clerk that the building was on fire. Todd said the first he knew was at home when an alert on his phone that a breaker had blown in the next-door car wash. He jumped in his car to reset the breaker for morning customers. Arriving, he saw the rooftop exhaust on the kitchen blowing flames.
Store front caved in. As the structure itself was consumed inflames. Inside the front door behind yellow don’t cross tapes are displays of goodies– blackened potato chips, other snacks, melted gummy bears , and heat-sagged display cases. Images: Steve Lunde