Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
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anyone have any info on this? i just heard on 96.1 fm in Fon du lac, that there was a possible arson fire last night at Powercom(Charter). they said a half million in damages.

Smells kinda funny.

The track and restrooms look fine, the concession, PA and party suites are a total loss. Check it out...

http://www.myfoxmilwaukee.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=3262335&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=3.1.1

Big Daddy E

A friend just emailed me a link from her newspaper, but it has less information than that video link posted earlier. Crazy.

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The fire sure does look bad.

I hope whoever started it is found by some race folks before the police find their bodies.

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well, there goes 5 or 6 sprint car shows i was looking forward to attending this season.

I'm sure they will race again this season. The grandstands are still intact. They will have to find a temporary way to do concessions and there are no suites. In fact, if they come up with a plan, I'll probably attend *more* races there than I originally planned just because I know they'll need the crowds to get back on their feet.

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Local news stated races will go on this weekend as planned & promoters are offering a reward for any info on who could have caused the fire.

Arson official cause of Raceway fire

By TERRI PEDERSON/Staff Reporter


Beaver Dam Fire Chief George Sheets, left, and Dodge County Sheriff Todd Nehls held a joint press conference at Charter Raceway Park on Monday.

Citizen Staff/Terri Pederson

Beaver Dam Fire Chief George Sheets, left, and Dodge County Sheriff Todd Nehls held a joint press conference at Charter Raceway Park on Monday.

Officials said it will take a few more days before they pinpoint the exact cause of the fire that destroyed the grandstand building at Charter Raceway Park.

Meanwhile, track officials said they plan to meet this week about the racing schedule, but have cancelled

Dodge County Sheriff Todd Nehls and Beaver Dam Fire Chief George Sheets held a joint press conference at the raceway on Monday.

They said there are leads about who may have caused the blaze.

The fire destroyed a building that houses the grandstand, concessions, offices and corporate sponsor seating area. It was labeled suspicious by local law enforcement.

Rex Melius, general manager of Wisconsin Motorsports & Entertainment LLC described the fire as "devastating."

Races scheduled for Saturday as well as the first race in the high-speed holiday series scheduled for Monday have been cancelled, Melius said.

He said that state and federal officials working with local law enforcement, had not released the scene for clean up as of this morning.

Melius said recovery would be labor intensive. Office records and materials were lost meaning they will need to be reconstructed. In addition, safety and comfort of guests will have to be addressed.

He said a temporary office will be placed on the site and that after clean up, issues such as plumbing and seating will need to be addressed.

"This is a long process," Melius said. But he added, "It's not a matter of if, but when."

"We'd like to thank everyone who has been supportive," Melius said.

He encouraged anyone seeking information, to visit the Raceway's Web site at www.powercompark.com.

The Dodge County Sheriff's Department, Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigations, an Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agent, State Fire Marshall and Beaver Dam Fire Department have been investigating.

"We spent a majority of the night here," Sheets said Monday afternoon. "There is an impact on the entire community and county with this fire."

Sheets said they are planning for the investigation to take three days. After that Wisconsin Motor Sports, which owns the raceway, may have an investigation done by their insurance company. It may cost about $500,000 to replace the building.

"They recently spent $50,000 on new signs," Sheets said. "The concession area was also stocked. They just had a race here on Saturday."

Nehls said dispatch received several calls Sunday afternoon from people driving on Highway 151 about a pickup truck on the south side of the building being on fire. In a minute or two, the building was also in flames.

Sheets said that the fire department was at the scene about 10 minutes after being called. He said it was suspicious that the building was fully engulfed when they arrived.

Earl Voigt Sr. who was plowing a field to the south of the race track saw a young man fleeing from the scene.

"He described it as running for his life," Nehls said.

The sheriff's department interviewed several young men who were in the area on Sunday night.

"They are not classified as suspects," Nehls said.

Nehls said that one man was arrested for obstructing an officer and he may have some information about who caused the fire. He speculated that the fires may have been started to disguise an attempted burglary or damage to the property.

Nehls said that the owners of the property have been helpful with the investigation and are not believed to have caused the fire.

The company's insurance agent will have to discuss what extra precautions will be needed. A bleacher area was not damaged by the fire.

In addition, Karavan Trailers of Fox Lake is offering a $5,000 reward for the arrest and conviction of anyone in connection to the arson. Those with something to report may do so by calling 1-800-78-CRIME, or the sheriff's office at 386-3726.