Fire destroys store's feed room

A fire late Sunday afternoon at Kingdom Feed Service damaged the front feed room and spoiled its contents, according to business owner Ed Wilsmeyer.

“It ruined all the feed in here,” he said Monday morning.

The store, however, is open for business, Wilsmeyer added. He said store personnel drove to another location Monday morning to get fresh animal feed.

“We should be able to take care of them,” he said of the business’ customers. “We may not have everything they need, but we’ll have something to get them by.”

The fire was reported at 4:09 p.m. Sunday at the business, at 2110 N. Bluff St. in Fulton, according to Assistant Chief Kevin Coffelt of the Fulton Fire Department.

“We arrived on the scene four minutes later,” he said, adding four engines and one ladder truck responded. “We saw light to moderate smoke coming from the roof area on the south side (of the front warehouse).”

Fulton police officers provided traffic support while an ambulance stood by, but there were no injuries, Coffelt said.

“We made a forced entry and found heavy smoke and an active fire,” he said.

The flames were knocked down within minutes, Coffelt added.

Fire officials have not yet estimated the cost of the damage.

“After completing the fire investigation at 2110 North Bluff Street (Kingdom Feed Service), the only thing that could not be ruled out as the cause of the fire is combustibles stacked too close to a light fixture,” Coffelt said later in a press release.

Although Wilsmeyer said he bought the business in 2012, it’s been operating since 1957.

“It could have been worse,” he said of the fire.