TIPP CITY — UPDATE @ 8:00 a.m: Multiple fire agencies responded to a fire that occurred at Living Simply Soap, a business located in downtown Tipp City on East Main Street Tuesday morning.
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Fire officials say departments from Tipp City, West Milton, Troy, Bethel Twp., Casstown and Vandalia were dispatched for smoke coming from the structure in the 100 block after a passerby called it in around 5:25 a.m.
Crews found heavy smoke coming from the third floor of the building and forcibly entered the structure by breaking the front glass door to extinguish the blaze.
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Fire officials say this fire was difficult to extinguish because the building has been renovated many times and there were multiple floors to navigate to ensure the fire was completely out.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, though it is believed to have started in the kitchen area.
The historic building houses various businesses, and one of the stores affected, Living Simply Soap located at 112 E. Main Street, reacted to the fire on their Facebook page.
I want to let everyone know that there was a fire in the building and we are at the shop. We are still trying to...
Posted by Living Simply Soap..fresh, fragrant, handmade on Tuesday, February 26, 2019
“I want to let everyone know that there was a small fire in the building and we are at the shop. We are still trying to determine what our damage is I just want all of you sending us messages to know we love you and thank you from the absolute bottom of our hearts for your concern!! We are makers, we are builders we will be back!”, the post read.
Living Simply Soap was the only business to sustain “fairly extensive” damage, according to fire officials. The business next to the store filled with light smoke, but did not suffer any fire damage.
Damage estimates were not immediately available.
In 2016, a bookstore on the same block at the heart of the historic district caught fire, causing $600,000 to $1 million in damage and sent three people to hospitals.
