Wimberley’s oldest retailer, King Feed and Hardware, caught fire in the early morning hours of Tuesday. A patron of the Brookshire Brothers’ Tobacco Barn and gas station noticed the flames at its location on RR12 and called Wimberley Fire and Rescue. King Feed co-owner Bryan Toifl was on the scene by 5:45 a.m. and was joined shortly thereafter by the business’ other owner, Laurie Ward. Both are previous employees who took over ownership in 2019 from then owner Chris Nichols.
The fire burned the main part of the building, completely destroying the interior,” said Ward. “The garden center and greenhouse areas are fine, but the interior is a total loss.” The feed warehouse appeared to be spared from the flames but a thorough assessment of the damage is still underway.
“The firemen who answered the call told us that the skylight in the main room helped mitigate the blaze by sending the energy of the fire upwards through its opening,” continued Ward who wanted to let people know that Simon, the store’s resident cat was outside and not injured in the fire. The business’ African Gray parrot, Doc, appears to not have survived.
According to King Feed’s previous owner, Nichols, who was on hand to lend support, “I think the fire could have been worse. The outside of the building did not burn although it did appear to suffer damage from the smoke. The fire department was able to put out the fire in under an hour.”
The blaze is under a standard investigation by the Hays County Fire Marshal’s office. A preliminary report will be issued in approximately two weeks.
“For now,” Toifl said, “we’re waiting for the investigation and the insurance adjuster to tell us the full extent of the damage. After that we’ll begin rebuilding.”
While the King Feed in Wimberley is currently closed, their location in Canyon Lake at 768 FM2673 is open.
