Storage facility fire destroys boats, RVs

  Crystal KobzaHOUSTON (KTRK) -- The investigation continues into a huge fire at a storage facility in northeast Harris County. Dozens of boats and recreational vehicles were destroyed but no one was hurt.

The fire started last night at the Miller Road 2 Boat and RV storage facility, just off of Highway 90 in northeast Harris County. Property worth thousands of dollars was lost in the fire.

The owners of boats stored in this facility started arriving early this morning. All of them were in disbelief their boats were gone.

"I'm devastated," said boat owner Dwayne Mitchell. "I'm heartbroken. I mean, what do you do?"

Dwayne and Traci Mitchell just bought a brand new pontoon boat a year ago and today nothing remains except a charred trailer.

"The only way I can know it's mine is by the lock that's on it," said Traci. "Everything else is gone."

"I've owned a lot of boats but this is my first new boat. I don't know," said Dwayne.

Sheldon, Channelview, Atascocita, and Huffman fire departments all responded to the fire. The fire did not spread to any other buildings.

"We understand from the owner, in every stall -- there are about 30 stalls -- and every stall does have either a boat or an RV in it, so yes, it's a high dollar loss," Dean Hensley with the Harris County Fire Marshal's Office.

Boat owner Carl Collins says his family had a lot of good times on their boat and plans to buy a new one.

"We have such a good time so there's no way I could do without having a boat," said Collins. "We have a good time on it."

The owner of the storage tells Eyewitness News even a classic car was stored here. He says his business is insured but says some people who had their boats stored here did not have insurance.

According to the fire marshal's office the cause of the fire is under investigation but at this point they do believe it could be electrical. The owner of the storage facility says he believes a boat battery charger could be to blame.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

local

View the original article here