HENRICO COUNTY, Va. -- Fire investigators are working to determine what started a fire inside a foam-filled warehouse on Klockner Drive in eastern Henrico. Fire crews arrived at Hudson Industries Inc. after a fire alarm sounded at about 1:55 a.m. Tuesday.
"First arriving units initially reported no fire visible and started investigating the large single story warehouse. After several minutes the crews located a fire inside the warehouse," Henrico Fire spokesman Capt. Danny Rosenbaum said. "Shortly after that the assignment was upgraded to a second alarm assignment with 16 fire units assigned to the call."
Sprinklers inside the warehouse helped prevent the fire from spreading. The foam stored in the warehouse is used in medical cushions for hospital beds and wheelchairs.
"It's always shocking to know that your business, that you've built over 40 years, is up in flames," business owner Gary Hudson said. "I was anxious to get here and see what could be salvaged."
No one was working inside the warehouse when the fire started and no injuries were reported, Capt. Rosenbaum said. Firefighters said the sprinklers were so effective, the business should be able to resume activities shortly.
"The sprinklers are what kept the fire under control," Henrico Fire Capt. Doug Reynolds said. "If those sprinklers were not in this building, we would have been looking at a parking lot. Especially this foam, it would've burned quickly. It would've been a dangerous fire."
The fire was marked under control at 3:20 a.m.
