Cleanup begins for Santa Cruz non-profit hit by fire

A non-profit organization that serves thousands of seniors and individuals in need on the Central Coast for more than 40 years is trying to pick up after a major fire. Cleanup started Monday at Grey Bears in Santa Cruz. The area that stored donations is a total loss.

Grey Bears serves about 4,400 seniors in the county delivering them fresh food every week. The thrift store that burned down provides about 30 percent of its total revenue.

Employees on Monday tried salvaging all they could from Sunday’s fire.

“I tried my best to stop the flames, but it got out of hand,” said Luis Cervantes, an employee for Grey Bears.

It’s a day Cervantes said he won’t forget. As flames shot through the roof of the non-profit’s thrift store and north side of the building, he grabbed an extinguisher without thinking twice.

“They were intense. I could feel the flames on my face. It was just intense. I can’t describe it. It just happened too fast,” he said.

The blaze was too overwhelming.

Fire crews were called and contained the fire within 10 minutes. But the damage was already done.

“There’s no way to minimize it. It is a setback,” said Tim Brattan, executive director for Grey Bears.

He said everything found in a typical home was destroyed in the fire, including office items, furniture and cutlery.

“It’s big, but as devastating as it is, we’re going to get through it,” Brattan said. “We have already made accommodations to use existing spaces, other spaces that were left untouched, to move the items that we can salvage to continue.”

“It just hits the people who need it the most the hardest,” said Vickie Bibich.

Bibich’s mother just got out of surgery and relies on the medical supplies at Grey Bears. She’s thankful donations and services won’t be disrupted.

As for Cervantes, he said he would step in again in a heartbeat.

“It’s something I’m not going to forget for a while, that’s for sure,” he said.

Grey Bears stores will be open as it cleans up over the next several days. Brattan said the public can still drop off donations and they need all the help they can get.

The area that was damaged will be up as soon as possible with a generator.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.