Smoky fire destroys foreclosed Madras storage units

A smoky fire early Friday morning destroyed one building at a closed Madras mini-storage business now under foreclosure, where neighbors said they had seen transient activity “for some time,” an official said.

Jefferson County Fire District No. 1 crews responded to the structure fire on Brush Lane at 5:37 a.m. and arrived within four minutes to find flames venting out of the eaves of the building, said Assistant Fire Chief Tom Jaca.

Firefighters opened up the structure and put out the blaze, but not before extensive damage that was found to be a full loss, Jaca said. The building was valued at nearly $57,000.

A total of 16 firefighters were on scene for about two hours, Jaca said. Madras police also responded to the scene.

The fire official said the property is under foreclosure and was unsecured at the time of the fire.

“There were reports from neighboring property owners of transient activity in and around the structure for some time,” Jaca said, adding that police were also on the fire scene Friday morning.

Due to the extent of damage “and the nature of the property,” fire crews could not determine the cause of the blaze, he added.