ROANOKE, Va. – It’s been nearly three weeks since Noke Van Co, the beloved business in Roanoke, was burned to the ground. But out of the ashes, the team is finding new ground to stand on as they push forward, step by step, to turn a hopeful new space into their next home.
The fire destroyed not just the building; it took vans, their home, their tools, and their sense of normalcy. Read the story of Noke Van Co’s devastation and community support
Josh Yerton, chief design officer and co-owner at Noke Van Co, reflected on the challenge ahead: “We are looking at this mountain that we have already climbed, and we are like, oh here we go, gotta climb it again.”
The fire broke out late on April 4, leaving the Noke Van Co team with nothing but rubble. After investigating the fire, the marshal’s office determined it was an accidental fire involving an electrical component, with an estimated loss of over $4 million.
Justin VanBlaricom, CEO and owner of Noke Van Co, described the emotional toll: “It was an emotional moment to just look at everything.”
The empty building may not look like much now, but to the Noke Van Co team, it represents a second chance. Permits are still being finalized, but the team is already cleaning it up, getting it ready, and calling it their hopeful new home in the same industrial park as before.
“For now, it’s paint everything so that when we get the green light to operate from here, we can put desks in here,” VanBlaricom said.
As they roll up their sleeves to rebuild, they’re not doing it alone.
Yerton emphasized the community’s support: “This is a city that gets it, that gets the idea of being with and for each other instead of, oh I’m sorry that happened, good luck. People have been, oh my gosh, we are devastated with you, what can we do to help?”
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Support the Yertons and VanBlaricom family in rebuilding Noke Van Co
This support is giving the Noke Van Co team the momentum to reimagine what comes next.
“What I’ve said is it gives us an opportunity to keep the best of Noke Van Co 1.0 and shed the worst,” VanBlaricom added.
Noke Van Co is hopeful to have their business back up and running by the beginning of May, only a month after the fire. To say the team is ready to start building vans again is an understatement.
“Yeah, it’s going to be awesome, epic,” VanBlaricom said.