July 26--MIDWAY -- A fire ignited by gasoline running across a connection between two electrical cords caused about $300,000 in damage on Friday to a Davidson County business, authorities said.
Chief Michael Craft of the Midway Fire and Rescue Department said that the fire began shortly after 9:15 a.m. at the Zeno Marshal Used Trucks Inc. at 11968 Old U.S. Highway 52.
The fire started when the gas tank was being removed with bolt cutters from a 1986 Crown Victoria on a lift outside the building, said Craft and Zeno Marshall Sr., a co-owner of the business. The business's garage, two vehicles, tools and supplies were burned.
The employees did not realize that there was a rusted-out hole in the top of the gas tank, Marshall said. When the tank dropped down, the gas in the tank ran onto the ground, he said. The gas flowed downhill, running across the electrical cords, sparking a fire.
Zeno Marshall Jr. said employees used fire extinguishers in an attempt to put out the fire.
"We have fire extinguishers everywhere, but when it's a gas fire, you can't do it by yourself," he said.
About 25 firefighters from three departments put out the fire in about 20 minutes, Craft said. The elder Marshall said that the business is not insured.
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Journal Photography Editor Walt Unks contributed to this story.
Copyright 2013 - Winston-Salem Journal, N.C.
