After fire takes Denair appliance store, neighboring business raises money for damages
A neighboring business is raising money to support the owners of A&R Appliance Repair in Denair after a structure fire broke out in the building on Wednesday.
Evelyn Armendiz, who has owned the store with her husband, Rene Estrada, since 2005, said she and her whole family were at their son’s high school graduation ceremony when the fire broke out.
“Everybody’s safe and everybody’s good,” she said. “Nobody was there, it was after hours.”
The Denair Fire Department responded to the fire at the store, located at 3748 N. Santa Fe Ave., at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, according to a statement. The building was burning through the roof by the time fire crews arrived at the scene. Additional support was provided by fire departments in Turlock, Hughson and Modesto, among others.
Firefighters were able to contain the fire to the one building, according to the statement, “although the building was a total loss.” No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is yet to be determined, but the Stanislaus Regional Fire Investigation Unit is investigating the fire’s cause and origin.
According to investigators, the estimated loss for the building and its contents is $300,000.
Nothing inside the store looks salvageable, Armendiz said, but she said the store will continue to provide appliance service work and follow-ups to their existing customers.
Bob Holloway, who owns Road Dog Tires close to the appliance store, set up a collection can in his store to raise money and support the business. Additionally, Holloway said he wants to recruit more businesses to raise money for A&R Appliance and eventually hold a more formal fundraising party in the coming weeks.
“They obviously lost their entire business, all their inventory,” he said. “They’re in a world of hurt right now. Denair is a small community. We’ve always stuck together. Whenever there’s a tragedy like this, the whole community comes together, and that’s what we will do.”
This story was produced with financial support from the Stanislaus Community Foundation, along with the GroundTruth Project’s Report for America initiative. The Modesto Bee maintains full editorial control of this work.
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This story was originally published May 27, 2021 at 4:53 PM.
