VENDORS, FRIENDS MAKING IT EASIER FOR FLOORING-BUSINESS OWNER TO RECOVER.Byline: SUE DOYLE Staff Writer CHATSWORTH -- Bernard Warshauer spent 24 years building his business from scratch and into one of the most competitive flooring and wall covering companies in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. . But it took little more than an hour Tuesday for fire to nearly destroy his warehouse and incinerate in·cin·er·ate v. in·cin·er·at·ed, in·cin·er·at·ing, in·cin·er·ates v.tr. To cause to burn to ashes. v.intr. To burn completely. rolls of carpet and linoleum linoleum (lĭnō`lēəm), resilient floor or wall covering made of burlap, canvas, or felt, surfaced with a composition of wood flour, oxidized linseed oil, gums or other ingredients, and coloring matter. flooring -- the backbone of Tri-Star Inc. ``It happened quickly,'' said the 47-year-old Calabasas resident. ``My heart was pounding so fast.'' Warshauer didn't sleep the night of the fire, which caused about $1 million in damage and was believed to have been caused by an electrical problem. But by Wednesday morning, his phone began ringing off the hook with condolences from friends, vendors and installers. Ironically, one competitor even phoned to offer tips on dealing with the aftermath of a fire, having coincidentally watched his building burn to the ground a year before. ``We had more than 100 phone calls from San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. to Santa Barbara Santa Barbara (săn'tə bär`brə, –bərə), city (1990 pop. 85,571), seat of Santa Barbara co., S Calif., on the Pacific Ocean; inc. 1850. from people who saw it on the news,'' said Warshauer, owner of Tri-Star Inc., on Wednesday. ``It's nice to see in these times.'' Abe Harari, a partner at nearby Sy's Discount Carpet, which his father founded, was among the well-wishers who phoned Warshauer after smelling smoke and hearing the symphony of sirens speeding toward the industrial park that houses the warehouse and other businesses at 20800 Dearborn St. Harari offered his carpeting at discount prices to Warshauer so he wouldn't fall behind with orders. ``This is a family business, like his,'' Harari said. ``The family spirit is to try to help out, give good deals and help the community when you can.'' The nearby blaze stoked stoked adj. Slang 1. Exhilarated or excited. 2. Being or feeling high or intoxicated, especially from a drug. bad memories for Mike Lee, owner of All Bright Window Coverings. Fire destroyed his business more than a year ago. Lee's new shop now stands down the road from Tri-Star. He called Warshauer on Wednesday to recommend reliable restoration companies and give advice on dealing with public adjusters, who inspect damaged sites on behalf of insurance policyholders. ``(With my advice) they'll get straight to the people who can help them with the situation they're in now,'' Lee said. On Wednesday, firefighters hosed down a heap of charred carpet and linoleum flooring outside the 60-foot-by-200-foot warehouse engulfed in flames In Flames is a melodic death metal band from Gothenburg, Sweden founded in 1990. Along with Dark Tranquillity and At the Gates, they pioneered what is now known as melodic death metal. Tuesday afternoon. The smell of smoke hung heavy in the air as firefighters inside the burned storage facility pulled apart rolls of carpet where embedded embers em·ber n. 1. A small, glowing piece of coal or wood, as in a dying fire. 2. embers The smoldering coal or ash of a dying fire. continued to smolder smol·der also smoul·der intr.v. smol·dered, smol·der·ing, smol·ders 1. To burn with little smoke and no flame. 2. . The fire moved quickly through the building, fueled by a stockpile of flooring materials and wind, said Jeff Marcus, Los Angeles Fire Department The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), also known as the Los Angeles City Fire Department to distinguish it from the Los Angeles County Fire Department. It is the agency that provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of Los Angeles. battalion chief. Marcus said strong winds Wednesday gave the deep-seated fire more air to burn. Authorities planned to stay a second night outside the now-roofless building to prevent more fire damage. On Wednesday, Tri-Star's 90 employees, thankful their offices were untouched by flames, arrived by 6 a.m. to get the business back in order. Susan Spratlen, customer service supervisor, was worried that clients might be upset about delayed orders. Instead, she found that customers called in with concerns about the business. In his office down the hall, Warshauer, thankful to have insurance, counted his blessings that no one was hurt in the fire. With the help of vendors who are allowing Tri-Star to store and receive supplies, he expects business to be back on track in a week. ``It's a bit of a lemon,'' he said. ``And I'm going to make some lemonade.'' sue.doyle@dailynews.com (818) 713-3746 CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Bernard Warshauer, owner of Tri-Star Inc., and production manager Alfredo Robles Robles is a common surname in the Spanish language meaning oaks, and may refer to:
Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion