Fleming Assessing Cost of Recent Warehouse Fire in Colorado

NEW YORK - Fleming Cos. said Tuesday it hasn't yet determined whether it will suffer a material loss from a late-December fire that destroyed a warehouse in Colorado, Dow Jones news wire reports.

The Dallas food distributor had leased more than 100,000 square feet of a 150,000-square-foot building in Aurora, Colo., that burned down Dec. 21. Fleming held insurance policies for the contents of the warehouse and costs associated with the interruption of business caused by the fire, Fleming spokesman Shane Boyd said.

The warehouse had distributed candy, snacks, cigarettes, over-the-counter drugs, and other items to convenience stores in Colorado and the surrounding area, Boyd said. Those stores are now being served by Fleming facilities in Alburquerque, N.M., and Salt Lake City.

Investigators had estimated damage from the fire to be $13 million to $15 million, according to the Rocky Mountain News. Fleming declined to comment on that estimate.

The unstoppable blaze was the result of arson, formed by two fires deliberately set at opposite ends of the building, investigators said. Two suspects have been arrested, and Boyd acknowledged that there has been "speculation" that the fire may have been set by former Fleming employees, but he declined to comment further.
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