Fire Causes $2 Million in Damage to Hollister Business

A fire at a machine business in Hollister, Missouri Sunday destroys the building, causing millions in damage.

More than 50 firefighter from four fire departments responded Sunday to a commercial structure fire in Hollister.

No one was injured, but initial estimates of damage total about $2 million at Branson Pattern Works on Mo. 165, according to a release from Western Taney County Fire District Assistant Chief Bruce Bjorge.

The district was notified of the fire at 1 p.m. and firefighters arrived on scene, heavy smoke was visible throughout the structure. They attempted to make an interior attack on the fire but were pushed back by intense heat and zero visibility, the release said. A short time later, the building was full of flames and firefighters were forced to extinguish the fire from outside the building.

Districts responding to the fire were Western Taney County Fire District, College of the Ozarks/Point Lookout Fire Department, Branson Fire & Rescue, and Central Taney County Fire District.

The Missouri State Fire Marshal was called in to help find the cause of the blaze. Due to the extent of the damage to the building, the Missouri State Fire Marshal ruled the cause of the fire as undetermined, but “nothing suspicious suspected,” Bjorge said.

The business, which contained machining equipment, was a total loss.