Knitting Factory in Boise damaged by fire; Lizzo & other shows moved
A fire hit Boise, Idaho’s Knitting Factory on Tuesday afternoon (9/11) and while it wasn’t a raging blaze, its source — within the floorboards and walls — made it hard for firefighters to get to, resulting in about 60% of the venue being damaged. From the Idaho Statesman:
“What wasn’t fire damaged was water damaged,” BFD spokeswoman Char Jackson said.
Boise Fire Department officials said late Wednesday afternoon that the fire was accidentally caused by a contractor working on the HVAC system for the business. The contractor accidentally created a spark when cutting metal duct work, and the spark spread to nearby materials to ignite the blaze.
The fire burned above the mezzanine, in between the first and second floor. Firefighters had to break windows and rip into walls to get to the fire, and that left a lot of debris on the floor, Jackson said.
“The fire wasn’t swift or aggressive fire but damage-wise it was pretty devastating,” Jackson said.
Needless to say, the venue needs to clean up and repair the damage the fire caused. Tonight’s Lizzo show and Friday’s The Tumbleweeds show have been moved to Boise’s Revolution Concert House, and the venue is currently assessing what it’s going to do with other upcoming shows. Knitting Factory Boise’s statement is below:
