‘We are completely devastated.’ Fire destroys Cambria kitchen store
A pickup truck drove into a natural gas line at a popular Cambria store Saturday, and the resulting fire left the metal-sided-and-roofed building a total loss, fire officials estimate.
Nobody was seriously injured in the two-alarm incident, which left the pickup precipitously poised on its left front tire, leaning up against the building at 4120 Burton Drive that houses A Matter of Taste.
The pickup’s driver, reportedly the father of a North Coast resident, was observed for a while by paramedics from Cambria Community Healthcare District’s (CCHD) ambulance.
A store employee and a couple of shoppers were able to get out safely, according to Cambria Fire Capt. Emily Torlano, who was the incident’s initial commander after her unit was first on scene.
Despite the chaos, she said, “it went very well. It was a very collaborative effort, which is how it’s supposed to be done. There were no injuries, we were able to contain it to the building of origin, which is a huge concern downtown, with all the old construction down there.”
A Matter of Taste owners Gayle Jenkins and Mark Morris weren’t at the shop when the fire exploded, Jenkins said Sunday, as they had been enjoying a rare Saturday off. But the pair arrived soon after being notified that their business was being destroyed by the blaze.
A Matter of Taste specializes in kitchen and home goods. The Cambria Chamber of Commerce awarded the shop Business of the Year honors in 2019.
“Everyone here at A Matter of Taste is okay,” Jenkins wrote via Facebook, responding to a flood of comments from concerned friends and customers. “We are completely devastated and in shock. I honestly can’t write more than this at this time. Thank you for everyone’s thoughts and prayers. We’ll keep you updated. For now, we just need time to digest what is happening.”
Torlano and Cambria Fire Chief William Hollingsworth said they received mutual aid response from San Luis Obispo, Templeton and Morro Bay fire departments as well as various county fire and Cal Fire departments and fire chiefs from Morro Bay and San Luis Obispo.
Also assisting were the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office, State Parks, the California Highway Department and two CCHD ambulances. A San Luis Ambulance unit acted as back-up, which was timely, Torlano said, because other medical calls came in during the fire response time.
Natural gas fuels fire at Cambria business
On Saturday, the building’s gas valve was sheared off in the vehicle collision, Hollingsworth said, so there was a delay in being able to shut off gas and electrical service.
Southern California Gas Co. had to call in a special crew to make the initial, emergency repairs, and it took time for them to get there.
Hollingsworth said a gas company representative was there “within the first hour,” but needed the specialized crew to secure the service. They had to go to the next closest access on Proctor Lane, the alley between the shop and the museum, and put a “cold pinch” on the line, the chief said.
Firefighters had tried a classic but potentially dangerous practice to shut off the gas valve, the chief said, a maneuver in which “we put one hose stream on the fire and another hose stream on the back of a firefighter going in to shut off the valve.”
But once that firefighter got close enough, Hollingsworth said, “he saw there was no gas valve there to shut off. The accident sheared it off. And, as is common in a lot of areas. The power meter is in the same area, so we couldn’t shut off the electricity either.”
So, the chief ordered evacuation of nearby buildings, which was broadcast by Cal Fire’s H70 helicopter, which was in the area in case anybody had been seriously injured.
Southern California Gas Co. finally secured the scene at 5:32 p.m. Saturday, Torlano said. Firefighters were cleared about 7 p.m., and then they responded to two more calls after that.
Because firefighters were able to contain the fire to the metal building, none of the neighboring structures were damaged, he said, although some business owners on Sunday were dealing with smoke and water damage.
The buildings closest to the fire were the French Corner Bakery, Cambria Drug & Gift and the Cambria Historical Museum.
As of Sunday, some businesses in the area remained without natural gas service, Jenkins said, including the bakery, Cambria Café and Sow’s Ear Café.
Linn’s Restaurant was allowing French Corner staff to use ovens at the former’s facilities when Linn’s wasn’t using them, according to Aaron Linn.
On Saturday, Cambria’s downtown area was packed with visitors, according to Linda “Laylon” Whittaker of The Vault Gallery.
Linn and sheriff’s Deputy Matthew Holton were among the first to arrive at the fire. They wound up directing traffic and trying to keep the burgeoning crowds out of the fire zone.
“I had to ask for help from the crowd,” Linn said.
Melody Coe, president of the Cambria Historical Society’s board of directors, said that she was “devastated at watching the fire and praying our museum survives, as flames shoot up and rockets of some sort fly out of the building like fireworks.”
Jenkins said Sunday that her stock included butane fuel for culinary torches and cartridges for a new product, Cork Pop refillable wine cork openers. On the morning of the fire, she’d just put out some of her recently arrived holiday and Christmas products.
Coe was evacuated when the gas-main damage was discovered. She said, “I was told by law enforcement that if it explodes it could potentially take out a bit of downtown.”
Fortunately, that didn’t happen.
Hollingsworth said on Sunday that he has red-tagged the building that housed A Matter of Taste as being uninhabitable, a call he’s sure will be confirmed by county officials.
Anybody driving by the building now, the chief said Sunday, won’t see a lot of damage at first.
“From the front, all you can see is the building with a funny roofline,” he said.
The initial gas explosion “blew out the corner of the building,” Hollingsworth said, and the subsequent fire “got into the attic, burning stuff there and severely bowing and compromising the whole center truss, the ridge piece” of the roof. “If we hadn’t been able to arrest the fire so quickly, it would have collapsed the building.”
That still could happen, according to Jenkins, who said she and Morris are still processing what has happened.
“I don’t know much yet at this point,” she said, adding that the trauma of it all is “so fresh. I honestly don’t think it’s really registered yet for me, although Mark is already very upset.”
Fortunately, they have good insurance, Jenkins said, “and we’re strong. We’ll get it going again. This will not get me down. We can continue to make this a good thing.
“We love this town and the people so much,” she said, choking up with emotion. ”When I woke up this morning, my first thought was that we’re so blessed by the outpouring of support from everybody.”
This story was originally published August 2, 2020 at 2:41 PM.
