Electrical problem blamed in $3 million Henderson fire

By Tiffany Gibson

Published Tuesday, June 15, 2010 | 3:31 p.m.

Updated Tuesday, June 15, 2010 | 5:14 p.m.

The Henderson Fire Department said today it determined that a pallet yard fire that caused $3 million in damage last week was likely caused by an electrical malfunction.

The fire was reported about 7:20 p.m. June 8 at IND Pallets, 400 Max Court near Boulder Highway. Henderson Deputy Fire Chief Steve Goble said it caused a significant amount of damage but no one was injured.

Officials said today that an investigation was conducted, which included the use of surveillance video, and no physical evidence could be recovered because of the severity of the blaze. The official cause was undetermined, but witness statements indicated the cause was from the use of electrical equipment in the pallet yard.

Several businesses, including a Holiday Inn hotel, had to be evacuated, authorities said.

Kenquest Medical, next to the pallet yard, lost all of its windows and has been boarded up. Goble said almost everything inside the building was lost in the fire.

He said Compassionate Pet Cremation also sustained minor damage. Owner Allen Silberstein said his building had roof damage and structural damage to walls facing the pallet yard.

The fire is one of the largest ever in Henderson, Goble said. In September 2003, a fire destroyed 349 apartments near Russell Road and Boulder Highway, causing about $10 million in damage.

Officials say the most damaging fire ever in Henderson occurred in May 1988, when a chemical fire at the Pacific Engineering Production Company of Nevada plant in erupted, killing two people, injuring more than 350 and causing tens of millions of dollars in damage.