No answers to what sparked costly storage blaze

Customers of a Nederland storage facility were locked out from retrieving any salvageable items or taking photographs from their rented storage units after a Nov. 26 fire destroyed most of the facility, according to comments renters made to The Examiner. Days later, many possessions remained inside damaged units – further deteriorated by exposure to the elements and Southeast Texas weather.

Despite the order to stay away, however, one customer was at the facility Dec. 1 rummaging through her family’s damaged possessions, desperately salvaging anything she could. The blaze, which was reported at about 9:20 p.m., consumed about 50 storage units and the office of Purely Storage, 2214 Spurlock Rd. in Nederland, and hers was no exception.

Client Brittany Van Houton was upset because she wasn’t told about the fire until the next day when the storage unit owner locked down the facility to customers, like herself. Van Houton said she didn’t know any details and was told everything in the center units was a complete loss.

“I was expecting nothing to be salvaged,” she said. “I walked in and found there was a quite a few things that could be salvaged. Did we lose a lot? Yes, we lost a lot.”

Van Houton was also expecting it to be more difficult to access her property, but found the facility gate open. She had waited 48 hours for a promised response from Purely Storage officials to go in and check her unit. Van Houton, an educator, added that she and her husband, a first responder, are building a new home in Bridge City and everything for the new house was in their storage unit.

“They told me that they were not going to let anyone in to get their stuff,” said Van Houton. “I forced my way in and told them to call the cops on me. I know it sounds bad but I’m not taking anything that doesn’t belong to me.”

Van Houton and her husband, along with a couple of family members, arrived at the facility Dec. 1 and loaded salvageable property into a pickup truck and house trailer.

“It’s not an option for somebody who has no stakes in the game to call far away off to say we can’t go in and get out stuff,” added Van Houton.

While at her storage unit, she noticed there were items in other units that were salvageable.

“I know there are a lot of people that I walk around and I can see there’s stuff that’s still salvageable,” she added.

Because the storage facility’s office was damaged by smoke and water, the property manager was sitting outside the office at a holdup desk and chair, answering calls from clients on her cell phone.

“She is trying to help, but her hands are tied on what she can do,” Van Houton said. “We forced our way in.”

Van Houton said, according to the contract with Purely Storage, that she has the right to get her property out of her unit.

“I’m in full awareness if something happens to me, it’s on me,” she said. “I’m taking legal responsibility for my own risk.”

Van Houton said that she and her husband lost several tens of thousands of dollars, but the sentimental items destroyed or damaged are priceless.

The couple collects old vintage furniture and items. Van Houton noted their 1962 vintage dining room set was partially damaged in the fire and the seats will need to be reupholstered. “That alone is a $3,500 set.”

The couple was able to salvage about 20% of their stored property, according to Van Houton.

“Most of our loss came from the soot and water damage. To me that’s unacceptable,” she said. “The things we lost were because of water damage. As soon as this building was deemed safe to walk in, we should have been allowed in to get our stuff. Our stuff sat out here for five days.”

It rained on Nov. 29.

Some customers, like John Graves, just want information on what caused the fire, but answers have been slow from the Jefferson County WCID 10 Volunteer Fire Department.

Graves, a former U.S. Navy officer, said he lost all his personal possessions in his storage unit, estimated about $40,000 to $50,000.

The day after the blaze, Graves said he went to the storage unit and was told it was “effectively a crime scene” and the scene could not be released until the fire marshal came to the scene. Graves said he discovered the fire chief handed the scene back to the property managers on Nov. 28.

According to a report on the fire released by Fire Chief Lance Wood of the Jefferson County Water Control Improvement District (WCID) 10 Volunteer Fire Department, the scene was released to the property managers at 1:38 p.m. Nov. 27.

After the fire, Graves stated he spoke to the state fire marshal’s office several times, spoke to the fire chief, sheriff’s department and even reached out to State Rep. Dade Phelan’s office. He noted while speaking to Wood, the fire chief expressed a very “nonchalant attitude” about the fire.

“There’s no electricity that goes to the building that caused the fire. These are self-contained units,” Graves said. “They (fire department) are trying to say it was electrical in nature, but there’s only one wire running along those units for three security lights.”

After speaking with the state fire marshal several times, Graves said he came to the conclusion the state fire marshal was “hamstrung” to investigate because the local fire department’s report on the blaze was “so nonchalant or so dismissive.”

“Just the monetary loss alone should warrant them to come to look at this,” he said. “I’m not saying anyone did anything wrong but, as a taxpayer, I think they (fire department) should try to determine a cause. There’s nothing unreasonable about that.”

In the fire report, Wood stated the cause of the fire was undetermined after investigation and the estimated value loss of the structure was $400,000.

“The State Fire Marshal’s Office will not be investigating the fire,” Wood added.

Graves, with his Naval training in battling fires, said the blaze had to have an “ignition source.”

District 3 Fire Investigator Lt. Tim Ware, of the State Fire Marshall Office (SFMO), said Dec. 2 they’re aware of the fire but have not been requested to conduct a fire investigation.

He said there are multiple ways the SFMO can be requested to investigate a fire according to the Government Code.

“We can be requested by a fire chief, police chief, sheriff’s office, property owner, insurance company and typically by anybody,” said Ware.

The owners of the storage unit did not respond to emailed request for comment.