Street dance, fireworks show to benefit Klemke’s Sausage Haus in Slaton

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - It has been five days since a massive fire destroyed several businesses at Slaton’s Downtown Square. There were a few smoldering spots on Wednesday firefighters were keeping an eye on.

In all, 22 different agencies rushed to the blaze with about 100 total responders, but it wasn’t just fire departments that responded, but also the community.

A street dance and fireworks show will be held in the Slaton Town Square to benefit Klemke’s on Saturday, July 6. There will be a silent auction, live auction and a raffle. Donations are welcome. There will be music from Trouble No More, Jordan Kirk, Jonathan Michael Jones, Ben Massey and the Joe Trevenio band. Pitforks and Smoke Rings will be cooking and donating a percentage of the proceeds to rebuild and restore Klemke’s. If you have any questions or need more information, call Jason Corley at 806-577-9778.

The State Fire Marshal completed the investigation, but have not released the cause of the fire yet. As of now, there are no details on how the fire started.

The fire started just before 2:45 a.m. Jason Bautista, an employee of Klemke’s Sausage Haus, called 911 after reporting smoke in the building. The fire destroyed Klemke’s and the Slaton Family Medical Clinic.

Fire Crews were on scene for around 36 hours before returning the equipment and trucks to the firehouse.

Klemke’s had been in business for more than 30 years, since 1987. Slaton Family Medical Clinic has been around for more than 30 years as well.

Chad Wilson of Slaton Bakery reported the store will be closed at least through this week due to smoke from Saturday’s fire at Kelmke’s. This will allow for clean up and assessment of damages.

Slaton Family Medical Clinic will have an office in the SEDCO building, located at 4119, 101 N 9th St., Slaton. Patients will need to enter through the left hand side of the building.

The owners of Slaton Bakery have started a GoFundMe for the owners of Klemke’s. You can find a link to make a donation here.

A GoFundMe has also been set up for Dr. Al Bendeck and the staff of Slaton Family Medical Clinic. You can make a donation by following the link here.

The Slaton Bakery released the following statement on social media:

We will be closed at the bakery for at least a week.

We are having a professional smoke removal company remove the smoke damage. Additionally, our gas meters have been knocked out by a wall that exploded across the alley and are unsure when the gas lines will be repaired. Please forgive us for not being able to open sooner. We appreciate all the LOVE, PRAYERS AND SUPPORT that is being given to us and more importantly our neighbors the Klemke's and Bendecks.

People have been asking how they can help... If you are moved to and are able to donate, please help our neighbors thru the following links or the Slaton Methodist Church fund.

Thanks so much, The Wilson Family and the Slaton Bakery