An Aug. 1 fire in the laundry building at Shocco Springs Conference Center caused a lot of damage, but “God had His hand” in the whole situation, said Russell Klinner, Shocco’s executive director.
The fire destroyed four industrial washers and four dryers, and water and smoke ruined clean bed linens, towels, blankets and other items stored in the facility.
“Virtually nothing in the entire facility was able to be saved,” Klinner said in an email update sent Aug. 18.
The damage could have been worse, however. Fire officials found that a water hammer arrestor had blown off a water line and was spraying the roof right above the fire, which helped contain the spread of the fire.
“There were multiple arrestors installed in the same line, but this particular one, located in the perfect place to help contain the spread of the fire, just happened to let go, allowing water to continuously spray over the fire the whole time,” Klinner said.
Had it not been for that, the entire building might have been a loss, and that was God’s doing, Klinner said.
‘God had His hand in all this’
“What the world might interpret as pure coincidence, we know from a Christian perspective that God had His hand in all this,” Klinner said. “Even the timing was providential.”
The fire happened at the end of the summer season, and staff members had just changed out linens across campus, so each room has a clean set of sheets and towels.
Insurance should cover the costs of replacing what was destroyed, Klinner said, and the process has already begun. Shocco will outsource laundry during the rebuilding, Klinner said.
Klinner said the pandemic and now the fire continue to teach him important lessons about God’s provision.
“The past two years have taught me this about the character of God: He sees above and beyond what I can see,” Klinner said. “I know that He has a plan and in this process of rebuilding our laundry facility, He will be glorified. Either through an encounter with a contractor or supplier, somewhere along the way, Shocco will get the chance to reach someone we never would have.”
For more information about Shocco Springs, click here.
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