Fire destroys shed at Turner Mountain

Thursday started out as a normal day at Turner Mountain Ski Area.

Kootenai Winter Sports board members Bill Frazey and Scott Kirschenmann had just about finished their work for the day, helping to prepare the mountain for the season opening, when Frazey noticed smoke coming from the groomer shed. Frazey and Kirschenmann rushed up to the shed to see smoke pouring out of the ceiling rafters and under the door.

The shed was used to store Turner Mountain’s groomers – large, expensive machines that prepare the slopes for skiers. Without those groomers, Turner’s season would be in jeopardy.

While Kirschenmann moved the groomers to safety, Frazey approached the shed to investigate the source of the smoke.

“I touched the door and it was not hot,” Frazey said. “So I opened it to see the inside of the building. It was engulfed in flames.”

Kootenai Winter Sports Board President Bruce Zwang said the fire will not interrupt the beginning of the season. Zwang has not yet announced when the ski area will open this year.

“This will be a major setback, but we will open as scheduled,” he said. “This will not stop the ski season at Turner Mountain.”

Frazey credits Kirschenmann for saving the season at Turner Mountain.

“His presence of mind to jump onto those groomers and move them to safety, that was incredible,” Frazey said.

The cause of the fire is unknown. Turner Mountain’s insurance carrier will have an adjuster/investigator on the scene within the next couple of days, Zwang said.

That is the first step in the process. The shed housed tools and spare parts that had accumulated for decades, which makes a determination of the loss value extremely difficult. Other than the groomers themselves, the shed and everything in it was “a total loss,” according to Zwang.

Frazey said it took less than 20 minutes for the entire shed to be consumed by the fire, burning up piles of tools and spare parts accumulated over 40 years of operations.

“Some of the parts were custom built for specific things at Turner,” Frazey said. “We’ll be discovering new things that are missing and that need replacing all year long.”