Published: October 15, 2009 10:21 am      

Wildwood Coating workers flee flames

An intense fire quickly engulfed a Clinton Township business Wednesday morning while all the workers escaped unharmed.

At 7:50 a.m. firefighters responded to a fire at 62357 C.R. 35, east of Goshen.

By the time firefighters arrived, flames had engulfed much of Wildwood Coating, a business owned by Dennis Helmuth. The fire began when a light bulb fell from the ceiling of the building, struck a container of stain, ignited that container as well as containers of paint and other substances. The amount of flammable compounds in the building led to what Clinton Township Fire Chief Abe Schlabach called an extremely hot fire.

Despite the intensity of the fire and the speed of its ignition, everyone inside the building escaped unharmed, according to firefighters.

Along with Clinton Township, crews from Elkhart Township, Jefferson Township, Goshen, Shipshewana, New Paris, Benton and Middlebury also helped to battle the blaze. C.R. 34 and Ind. 4 were blocked at C.R. 35 during the fire, and C.R. 37 was also blocked for a short time while tankers collected water there. As of 3:30 p.m., firefighters were still at the scene, making sure all the hot spots were out while others picked up fallen metal and other debris. Schlabach said they would finish and leave within the next hour.