MIDDLETOWN >> In the aftermath of the fire that consumed the Hardester’s Market flagship store at 21088 Calistoga Road in Middletown beginning Monday afternoon, co-owner Ross Hardester was sure of one thing: the store will return.
“It takes a while to clean up, make plans and build, but we’re confident we’re going to rebuild,” he said Tuesday morning. “We’re just glad everybody’s safe,” Hardester said, adding that he has “been around long enough to know that fire’s a common thing around here. My first reaction was, hopefully, everybody gets out of the building and nobody gets hurt.” Hardester’s Market opened in Middletown in 1943 and had since expanded into Cobb and Hidden Valley. The Middletown location was a community hub that employed over 100 people.
Those individuals were Hardester’s chief concern. “Our first priority is figuring things out with our employees,” he said. “It’s going to be a hard process, but everybody in town’s done it, so we can do it as well.”
He was referring to the Valley Fire of 2015 that blazed through the center of Middletown, taking numerous structures, including many homes, with it. Hardester stressed that it was “tough for the whole community. We received so much support through that, it was incredible. It’s such a friendly area, and we’ve had nothing but positive support from everyone.”
California Highway Patrol reported that officer Efrain Cortez was in Hardester’s ordering a sandwich at the onset of the fire. He saw “smoke billowing above the northeast side of the building” and called in Fire Code 3. While controlling traffic around the building, Cortez witnessed a Cal Fire firefighter becoming “partially engulfed in flames.” Cortez helped bring the firefighter to safety, suffering first-degree burns to his right hand and smoke inhalation. He was treated at the Adventist Health Clear Lake Medical Center and released Monday.
The firefighter, whose identity was not disclosed, sustained third-degree burns and was airlifted to the UC Davis Medical Center for Treatment Monday afternoon. By Tuesday, a spokesperson with the Mike Thompson Napa District Office said the firefighter suffered burns on his back but were not as significant as previously reported and is “in good spirits” alongside family and fellow firefighters.
According to Mike Parkes, Cal Fire Deputy Chief of Operations for the Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit, the fire was reported at 2:20 Monday afternoon, and had broken out in the refrigeration area of Hardester’s Market. Initially, Cal Fire and South Lake County Fire units responded, but the building quickly became “well-involved, and we requested mutual aid resources from virtually every other agency in Lake County,” Parkes said. No other surrounding structures were affected.
Parkes explained that because the fire was located deep inside the building, which had a metal roof that did not allow water to penetrate, firefighters were having a hard time getting to the seat of the fire. At 4:30 p.m. Monday, Parkes said he expected firefighters to be out all night with hoses aimed at the market.
By Monday evening the building had collapsed, but the fire was mostly under control. An excavator was brought to the scene that night to tear down what stood of the charred structure, except where the fire was believed to have originated, to facilitate access to remaining hot spots. As of Tuesday afternoon, firefighters were still tending those areas, and clean-up had begun. A thorough investigation is underway, according to fire officials.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office reported that all other businesses in the area reopened with regular business hours.
Tammy Murga contributed to this report.
