Investigators examine Bergquist Imports fire scene

The Cloquet Area Fire District brought its ladder truck to the Bergquist Imports complex again Monday, but there was no fire. This time investigators were taking aerial photos of the roof of the large warehouse that burned in February, said CAFD lead investigator Jason Maki.

By the next day, much of the roof was gone, as a number of investigators from CAFD, the state fire marshal's office and more than one insurance company worked their way through the burned-out remains of the warehouse.

The investigation to determine the cause of the fire is still in the preliminary phases.

“We’ve been waiting for the snow to melt,” said an investigator with one of the insurance companies, who declined to give his name. “This is just a continuation of the investigation.”

Maki said CAFD and state investigators were in the building the day after the fire and took initial photos.

“Due to snow-load and weather, we couldn't do anything else,” Maki said. “So everything at that point was boarded up and secured until we could go back in.”

There are three buildings on the site at 1412 Highway 33 South — owned by Barry and Vivian Bergquist — totaling 30,000 square feet and valued at $903,000, according to Carlton County property tax reports.

The metal warehouse is likely a total loss, CAFD officials said in February. The two retail businesses — the Bergquist Imports store and the Erbert and Gerbert’s sandwich shop — were spared by the blaze, although both had smoke damage.

Erbert and Gerbert’s is open again after extensive cleaning. The Bergquist Imports store remains closed, although a peek through the window showed the inventory had been removed. Although the Berggren Trayner business no longer operated out of the warehouse, the warehouse space behind the retail stores was still used for inventory storage by Scott Camps, who purchased the retail and wholesale Bergquist Imports business in February 2021.

Group investigation

CAFD investigator Maki said there are many different investigators involved, as well as electrical and structural engineers.

It’s not unusual to have a slew of people participate in the investigation of a large fire, CAFD chief Jesse Buhs said, citing previous fires at Cloquet Interiors and the Cloquet Home Center.

“You kind of follow the clues as to where the area of origin for the fire is,” Buhs said. “They have to know the kind of contents and how things react under fire conditions. That’s why you get all these really smart folks, with specialties, like Jason said, who look at each component, to either try and eliminate or include a potential cause.”

It’s all about finding the origin and cause of the fire. Sometimes they can do it, other times the trail has gone up in smoke. Public and private sector investigators work together. CAFD had two investigators — Maki and Chad Vermeersch — plus a ladder truck driver on site Monday, along with state and insurance investigators and a local excavating company.

“It’s just a systematic approach to looking for stuff, whether it’s supposed to be there, or not supposed to be there,” Maki said.

He said they didn’t know how long the fire had been burning when the call came in on Feb. 22, or any idea of the cause.

“Until the investigation is complete, we’re not gonna have a lot of answers,” Buhs said. “This is the work that gets those answers, hopefully.”