Gorst business' floor sinks 3 feet in minutes
GORST, Wash. -- A business in Gorst is trying to solve the mystery of why its floor sank nearly 3 feet in the course of a couple of minutes. And it happened without warning.
Inside the showroom of Beyond the Studs Building Supply, it looks like the earth just swallowed everything up.
Owner Rod Blake heard crashing sounds, ran over from office just next door, and said...something that can't be put in print.
"Basically, 'holy crap!'" he said.
Showroom displays, including heavy windows and doors toppled violently.
When Rod's wife learned it happened Thursday night right after closing, she realized how lucky he was.
"Truly in a matter of not more than 2 minutes and he would have been in there as the floor collapsed," Roxanne Blake said.
Despite possible danger, firefighters allowed Rod to grab one item out of the mess.
"My father-in-law made this out of stained glass for us -- it's our logo for the business, and it was pretty special to our family," Rod Blake said.
But sentimentality won't pay the bills. This creates a terrible financial crisis.
"It's pretty upsetting," Roxanne Blake said. "I mean, we're a small business. Economically, times are tough. And obviously now our doors are closed and that don't pay the mortgage."
Sympathetic customers and strangers are stopping by for a look.
"Absolutely nuts--doesn't make sense to me," said Travis Evans.
County building inspectors think moisture deteriorated the old wood-beam floor, causing it to gave way under the weight of a 2.5 inch layer of concrete on top.
The Blakes vow not to let this disaster end their 13-year-old business.
"Put one foot in front of the other...and go from there," Roxanne Blake said.
They say insurance probably won't cover this kind of thing. The Blakes say some small sinkholes developed after a contractor did some water or sewer line work. They'll have to wait for a structural engineer's report to figure out exactly why this happened and what or who to blame.
Inside the showroom of Beyond the Studs Building Supply, it looks like the earth just swallowed everything up.
Owner Rod Blake heard crashing sounds, ran over from office just next door, and said...something that can't be put in print.
"Basically, 'holy crap!'" he said.
Showroom displays, including heavy windows and doors toppled violently.
When Rod's wife learned it happened Thursday night right after closing, she realized how lucky he was.
"Truly in a matter of not more than 2 minutes and he would have been in there as the floor collapsed," Roxanne Blake said.
Despite possible danger, firefighters allowed Rod to grab one item out of the mess.
"My father-in-law made this out of stained glass for us -- it's our logo for the business, and it was pretty special to our family," Rod Blake said.
But sentimentality won't pay the bills. This creates a terrible financial crisis.
"It's pretty upsetting," Roxanne Blake said. "I mean, we're a small business. Economically, times are tough. And obviously now our doors are closed and that don't pay the mortgage."
Sympathetic customers and strangers are stopping by for a look.
"Absolutely nuts--doesn't make sense to me," said Travis Evans.
County building inspectors think moisture deteriorated the old wood-beam floor, causing it to gave way under the weight of a 2.5 inch layer of concrete on top.
The Blakes vow not to let this disaster end their 13-year-old business.
"Put one foot in front of the other...and go from there," Roxanne Blake said.
They say insurance probably won't cover this kind of thing. The Blakes say some small sinkholes developed after a contractor did some water or sewer line work. They'll have to wait for a structural engineer's report to figure out exactly why this happened and what or who to blame.
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