Press release from Norm Mitts of Belleville Fire Department.
An investigation continues into the cause of an early morning fire today that destroyed a popular east end Belleville hair design business. Long-time owner-operators of Komosis Hair Design on Herchimer Ave. are devastated at the loss of their building to fire. The stubborn blaze was detected by a fire alarm system at 1:44 a.m., however it appears the blaze was smoldering undetected for some time prior to the alarm.
Fire crews arrived very quickly on scene to discover heavy smoke and visible flames from the windows and roof of the rear 2-storey portion of the structure. The fire, believed to have originated near the floor of the main level, quickly spread through an open staircase to the second floor until the roof was almost fully consumed.
Two Belleville aerial ladders were used to fully extinguish the fire once interior fire attack was halted, fire crews were ordered to evacuate the building and the commanding officer was forced to resort to a defensive attack.
Platoons of additional off duty personnel were called in to help bring the blaze under control.
Fire Inspector Norm Mitts says “It’s a real tragedy to see the emotions of this family as they witnessed the destruction of their long time business”. As the business owners looked on they merely stated “it’s absolutely terrible to see but no one was hurt.”
The fire remains under investigation at this time and is not considered suspicious in nature. There were no injuries reported, however icy conditions were created as water quickly froze. The building and business are both fully insured. An initial damage estimate is not available at this time but may exceed $750,000 – $800,000.
