Local Veteran, Richard McIntire, has spent the past few days sifting through what remains of more than 40-years of history, including military memorabilia, medals and awards, after a fire destroyed his shop.
“I used the shop for family functions, Marine Corps League meetings, Christmas parties, etc.,” said McIntire. “We were minutes from starting our Marine Corps League meetings when Norma said she saw smoke coming out of the camper next to the shop.”
Had the meeting started just minutes earlier, no one would have known of the danger they would have been in.
“It would have been worse if the meeting had been going. No one would have known it was blazing – I had gas cans in the overhang with the camper. That would have probably took the fire to my house.”
After firefighters extinguished the blaze and the smoke began to settle, McIntire knew most of what he treasured inside was gone.
“Some things are salvageable but I lost a lot of military memorabilia and a bunch of things I had saved from the farm I grew up on in Clarksville,” he said. “My military awards, medals, ribbons and things like that are all smoke damaged. I was able to save my uncle Purple Heart, who was killed in Korea.”
McIntire is hoping the shop itself can be salvaged and he is thankful no one was hurt, but the loss of irreplaceable military items is “a hard pill to swallow.”
According to reports, the fire started in a camper parked next to the shop but the cause of the fire to start is unknown.
