Tazlina Trading Post & Outbuildings Burn To The Ground December 20th

Tragic Christmas Fire Wipes Out Important Landmark, Other Local Businesses 

From You Tube video of Tazlina Trading Post Fire by "Polar Remedies"

The Tazlina Trading Post, owned by the Don and Joyce Horrell family for decades, burned to the ground on Sunday afternoon, December 20th, 2020.

 

Trading Post Sold Vital Supplies

The Trading Post was a well-known and important landmark. A pillar of smoke rising from the blaze was visible for miles away. The fire took with it an adjacent hair salon owned by Kendra Harder, called Kendra's Kreations,  Casa De La Arte, an art and gift shop owned by Naomi Young and Connecting Ties.

"Tazlina," as it was known to locals, sold a wide range of items, including groceries, appliances, toys, frozen goods, birdfeed and sporting goods. There was also a gas station and liquor store.

No people were reported hurt. The Tazlina Trading Post is one of a long line of vital buildings that have burned down in the Copper River Valley over the years. Some of them, such as the Hub and the Sports Page have been rebuilt – into the new Hub and NAPA. 

 

It's Not Just "A Building" ...In The Wilds Of Alaska, Fires Wreak Havoc On Community, Economy & Social Life

There have been other disastrous fires, with a huge impact on their small surrounding communities, including the destruction of Chistochina Lodge, Tangle Lakes Lodge on the Denali Highway, Old Copper Center Catholic School, Gakona Junction RV Park, Crackerbarrel Grocery Store in Glennallen, Sourdough Roadhouse, the Glenn-Rich Hotel and Restaurant, Copper Center Lodge, Summit Lake Lodge and Mendeltna Lodge. Other major fires have included an entire row of hotel rooms that burned down at the Caribou Hotel Annex, and the burning down of National Bank of Alaska. 

Every fire that has taken one of these buildings has destroyed a core piece of community life and services. The Copper Valley – in spite of not having to contend with a major threatening forest fire since the Wilson Camp Lightning Fire of 1983 – has seen a stunning number of key burned-out buildings, each of which played an outsized role in local life. Although some of the buildings were replaced, many were not. In the Copper Valley, a single lodge or store burning down has the same impact as an entire city block in a larger community. In a place like the Copper Valley, the efforts of every single citizen or business is magnified, and every loss is devastating.

 For more on the devastating impacts of fire, see: Chistochina Saves The Lodge. Click here 

The Trading Post was built in 1958 by Lucille and Leonard Brenwick, who ran it until 1971.

The Tazlina River Trading Post Fire can be clearly seen on a You Tube video by "Polar Remedies" which follows.

 SEE YOU TUBE VIDEO OF TAZLINA FIRE CLICK HERE