A fire broke out at Franko’s Farmstand on Riverside Avenue in Hoquiam early Saturday morning, Oct. 30, but quick response from the Hoquiam and Aberdeen fire departments confined the damage to the office area of the market.
According to a post by the adjacent Hoquiam Farmer’s Market on Saturday morning, arriving bakery workers discovered smoke coming from the farm stand in the early morning hours Saturday and called 911. A responding Hoquiam Police Department officer found fire inside of the secured building.
Both Aberdeen and Hoquiam fire personnel responded automatically to the report, “because the departments have been working together to respond to all structure fires with the maximum of available resources,” said Hoquiam Police Chief Jeff Myers.
The fire appeared to be centered around the window of the office in the building itself, where the cash register is located, sparing the tented area that cover the produce. The window above the cash register was broken out, and the area around it was blackened. The office area itself was thick with the smell of smoke hours after the fire and water soaked the floor and walls, which were covered with soot.
The exact circumstances behind the fire are still under investigation. A source at the scene Saturday said there was a report of a female acting erratically outside the farm stand shortly before the fire. As the fire damaged area was sifted through, there was no sign of the cash register, and there was some loose change laying on the floor on the other side of the window, which led to some speculation it may have been stolen.
There was also some talk of the use of space heaters as a possible source for the fire, but again, as of Monday morning, no specific cause for the fire was reported and the case is still under investigation.
The market was closed Saturday, but was reopen for regular hours Sunday, Oct. 31. There were no injuries reported.
DAN HAMMOCK | THE DAILY WORLD A small fire at Franko’s Farmstand on Riverside Avenue was quickly knocked down by Aberdeen and Hoquiam firefighters Saturday morning.
DAN HAMMOCK | THE DAILY WORLD Franko’s Farmstand staff clean up after a fire Saturday morning. The farm stand was closed Saturday but able to reopen for regular hours Sunday.
