Authorities investigating Bantam building fire
The early Sunday, Nov. 2, fire that destroyed the former Bantam Jeep building in Butler was “gut wrenching,” one of the building’s owners said Monday.
Kris Bamberger, a partner in CERTA, LLC, of Cincinnati, Ohio, said he left from Cincinnati “in the middle of the night” for Butler soon after being alerted to the fire by a friend who learned about it through a social media post.
He said he arrived in Butler about 8 a.m. to get a firsthand look at what was left of the company-owned building.
“It was gut wrenching. We’ve never dealt with anything like this,” Bamberger said. “I was sick to my stomach all the way up here.”
After he arrived, he said crews knocked over the walls that remained standing.
“We did cave it in today to make it safe for the community,” Bamberger said.
The remains of the building will be cleaned up, he said.
He said he also met with fire and police officials who told him the cause has not been determined.
“There was no power to the building, so it can’t be utilities,” Bamberger said.
He said CERTA had been trying to sell the building, which was in poor condition before the fire, along with its surrounding 19 acres. The building’s roof fell in 25 to 30 years ago and much of the interior also had collapsed, he said.
“We were trying to market it as a building with acreage, but no interest,” Bamberger said.
He said he still wants to sell the property.
Butler fire Chief Chis Switala said a permit was issued for the demolition ordered by the fire department because the collapsed roof and floors left the building unstable.
“The building has to come down as soon as possible for safety reasons,” Switala said Monday. “They started demolition today. They got a lot of it down.”
He said the fire department, city police department and state police fire marshal are investigating the cause of the fire, which might be difficult to determine due to the extent of the damage.
“Based on the amount of damage, it makes it more difficult for sure,” Switala said.
Firefighters periodically checked on the smoking pile of debris left by the fire. Switala said pockets of burning material under the debris will continue smoking for some time, but the fire is contained.
The three-alarm fire was reported at 1:41 a.m. Sunday, and firefighters arrived a few minutes later. The fourth story of the structure collapsed about 20 minutes after firefighters arrived. It took about 90 minutes to get the fire under control, but firefighters returned several times to extinguish hot spots. One firefighter suffered a minor injury and was treated at the scene.
