Photo Provided A city contractor begins clearing out debris from the Jefferson Avenue structure fire on Monday morning. Jefferson Avenue was closed most of the day.

MOUNDSVILLE — As city crews work to clean up the building materials and debris left behind by the Jefferson Avenue structure fire on Friday, community members are focused on restoring the businesses that were lost due to the blaze.

The fire began about 9:40 a.m. Friday at the large structure on Jefferson Avenue that formerly housed the Remke Furniture store. By the time the fire was extinguished Friday night, the structure was a total loss.

Moundsville Fire Department Chief Gary Brandon said the cause of the blaze was “undetermined” due to the extent of the damage from the flames. Brandon said the fire was difficult to extinguish because the building had undergone multiple remodels.

Twenty agencies helped battle the fire Friday, including local fire and police departments, the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office and the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. Marshall County Emergency Management Director Tom Hart said around 3 million gallons of water were used on Friday to extinguish the fire between the city water system and the tanker task force that drew water from the Ohio River.

City crews began cleaning Jefferson Avenue on Monday morning. Following a city contractor removing debris from Jefferson Avenue, the Moundsville Public Works and Street Department cleaned up the area.

Portions of Jefferson Avenue between Second and Third streets were closed Monday morning for cleanup efforts. The street was opened to traffic that evening.

Three businesses that operated out of the structure must find new homes following the fire. The building also contained an office space and apartments that were not being rented at the time of the blaze.

Husband and wife Paul and Jamie Faulkiner leased space in the building to run Red Dragon Hybrid Tae Kwon Do martial arts school. It also housed Emily Dougherty Yoga and Toys for Tots West Virginia.

Jamie Faulkiner noted the number of people impacted by the loss of the three businesses. The martial arts school had 52 students ages 4 to 51. Two local yogis, Emily Dougherty and Shelby Garrett, taught classes at the yoga studio, which typically had 15 to 20 attendees per class.

The Toys for Tots location provided toys to less fortunate children in Marshall, Tyler, Wetzel, Harrison and Doddridge counties in West Virginia. In 2024, the location distributed 2,723 toys to 1,027 children.

The couple is now searching for a permanent location to relocate all three businesses. Jamie Faulkiner noted that the more than 10,000 square feet they rented in the Jefferson Avenue building was the “perfect space” to run their businesses.

“We would like to find someplace big enough because it (the Jefferson Avenue building) had plenty of space and street doors for certain things,” Jamie Faulkiner said. “We used to own a flower shop (at the Jefferson Avenue building) and we contemplated signing a lease at another location upon closing the flower shop, but the truth is the building turned out to be perfect (for their three businesses). When people came in to get their toys for Christmas time, we were able to funnel them in through one door.”

A GoFundMe fundraiser has been created at gofundme.com/f/support-rebuild-red-dragon-tae-kwon-do-studio-after-fire to help support and rebuild the martial arts studio. Jamie Faulkiner said local schools and churches have offered temporary locations to operate the martial arts studio.

She also said the couple would like to relocate to “either an event center or a school.” In the meantime, she said they would likely use the facilities of local schools for martial arts classes, including Moundsville Middle School, which she noted was “right around the corner.”

“We’re speaking with building owners right now and need something long term,” Faulkiner said. “The amount of space we’re looking for is vast. In the valley, there are not many buildings that haven’t already been taken or, unfortunately, are not so dilapidated that they’re unusable.”

The couple is also making a list of the equipment they lost in the fire, including uniforms, belts, gloves, boxing pads, kick bags and wrestling mats. Jamie Faulkiner said they have also contacted Toys for Tots’ corporate office regarding the overstock items from last year’s toy donation drive that were lost during the fire.

The Faulkiners thanked the community for its support following the blaze, whether through donations or reaching out to help with cleanup efforts. Jamie Faulkiner said that despite the “huge setback,” they plan to continue forward and hope to provide the services they once offered to the community again.

“We’ve had an outpouring of love and support not only from our taekwondo family but the whole community,” Jamie Faulkiner said. “Friends and families, but also acquaintances and people we’ve never even met before have reached out to help us. We’re so thankful for any help, whether they support us through donations or by helping us find a new building.”