Early Morning Fire Guts Lebanon Mini Mart

There was no damage to the owners' home close by.

A fire demolished the C & R Mini Mart Monday morning. Photo: Lebanon Fire District

(LEBANON, Ore.) - An undetected fire tore through the C & R Mini Mart Monday morning destroying the small convenience store outside of Lebanon near Waterloo.

Firefighters received the call for flames coming from the rear of the market at 31054 Santiam Highway just before 5:00 a.m. and arrived to find the small market fully engulfed in flames.

"Due to the large amount of fire within the small structure our crews knocked down the majority of the fire from outside of the structure before moving in to extinguish the rest of the fire." said LFD Division Chief Jason Bolen.

The fire was under control within a matter of minutes, but crews remained on scene past 7:00 a.m. mopping up and overhauling the structure.

The business owners live on the same property roughly 50 feet from the store but there was no damage to their home. The store had been secured since 10:00 p.m. last night when the owner closed for the business day.

There were no injuries to any civilians or firefighters and the property was insured according the owner.

Members of the LFD Fire Investigation Team conducted an investigation on Monday morning to determine the origin and cause of the fire. The investigation found the fire to be accidental in nature and likely caused by an electrical malfunction of operating equipment.

Anyone with information regarding this fire is encouraged to contact Deputy Fire Marshal Ken Foster at 541-451-1901.

WATCH VIDEO: Mini-Mart Fire, Lebanon, OR. 10-30-2017 Source: Lebanon Fire District