SHAMOKIN, Pa. — Rick Knovich took video of a fire that tore through Firehouse Winery in Shamokin on Sunday.
His home shares a firewall with the business. Knovich heard a knocking at the door from a neighbor while he was inside his home. When he came outside the area was full of smoke and he could see flames shooting from the winery.
"I went back in, and by the time I went back in, the house was totally full of smoke; you couldn't even see, from that point on, the companies had rolled in from all over the place to try to protect it—thank god for the firewall between this," said Rick Knovich, Shamokin.
His home sustained smoke damage. He left his windows open all night, trying to get the smell out. He says firefighters were ready to protect his home in case flames spread from next door.
"They ran hoses inside as a precaution in case the wall was breached with the fire, so as a precaution, they were running it up to the third floor with the hose just in case," said Knovich.
Knovich says he saw the owners of the winery on Sunday morning, hours before the fire started. They were there to clean up from a private event the night before.
"He was quite upset that the—he came over to me like 4 times yesterday saying I'm sorry, I'm sorry, and he was crying, and I can't blame him, but I can't blame him," said Knovich.
The Firehouse Winery opened in 2016. the building was once home to the former Liberty Hose Company. Knovich tells us the business was recently starting to take off.
"I know they had a lot of work done in recent months, some electrical and with new appliances and stuff in the kitchen and they were doing quite well lately," said Knovich.
A state police fire marshal is investigating the cause of the blaze in Shamokin.