TEA - Lightning struck a child care center in Tea and ignited a fire in a Tea apartment complex last Tuesday, causing the roof to burst into flames.
Firefighters from Tea, Harrisburg, Lennox and Sioux Falls responded to the 10:55 a.m. call at Gaspar Property at 625 E. Brian St., west of the Get-n-Go convenience store. Gary Gaspar owns the building.
Gaspar, a 20-year property manager, said he’s never experienced a fire of that magnitude on a rental property before.
“I was stunned; kind of dazed,” Gaspar said. “There aren’t really words to describe it.”
Firefighters brought the fire under control in 40 minutes, staying on the scene until 4 p.m., Assistant Fire Chief Tom Berens said.
The eight-unit apartment complex sustained fire damage to the roof and attic, with water damage throughout the building. Seven units were occupied.
The property damage was not total, although Gaspar isn’t yet sure what will be salvaged. Insurance will cover the damages.
“They’re going to comb it over and see what parts of it can be saved,” he said.
Most of Gaspar’s tenants had renter’s insurance, he said, and they have all been released from their leases.
Two workers with the Red Cross of Sioux Falls arrived on the scene to provide water and assistance to the firefighters and possible medical assistance to the tenants, Emergency Services Director Samantha Hill said.
The Red Cross offered temporary housing for the families displaced by the fire, but Hill said everyone had a place with relatives or friends by Tuesday night.
“Everybody’s doing really well on the road to recovery,” Hill said.
Berens was on a call at Tea Tots Day Care, 2100 N. Devon Drive, when he learned the apartment complex had caught fire. Tea Tots Day Care was struck by lightning about 10:30 a.m., forcing the evacuation of more than 100 kids to Tea Area High School.
There was no damage to the day care except for the fire alarm panel and electrical damage.
No injuries had been reported, Berens said.
Jeff Lee’s daughter, Brianna, 5, was at the day care in Tea when it was struck by lightning. Lee received a call from his wife to pick up their child.
“There was some concern,” Lee said of hearing the news. “By the conversation I had with her, it sounded like everything was under control.”
When Lee picked up his daughter, he said the children were playing games - a testament to day care operators keeping a sense of calm that comforted their charges.
“I’m sure there were tense moments at some point in time,” he said, noting that fire alarms probably scared the kids. “I think they (day care providers) had a well-organized plan for what to do in a case like this and I think it was executed properly.”
Multiple tree branches fell Tuesday morning in Sioux Falls after thunderstorms moved through the area, the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Department said.
Tree branches fell at 12th Street and Elmwood Avenue; 10th Street and Lake Avenue; and in the 3500 block of South Western Avenue.
Branches landed on power lines at 701 N. Williams Ave. and 606 N. Cleveland Ave.
Near Renner at 258th Street and 474th Avenue, a tree branch landed on a truck and broke a windshield.
A tree fell into the street outside of Borrowed Bucks Roadhouse at 41st Street and Western Avenue, temporarily blocking one lane of southbound traffic.
The Sioux Falls area was under a severe thunderstorm warning from the National Weather Service at the time.