DATE: Sunday, May 18, 1997                  TAG: 9705180011

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 
SOURCE: BY STEVE STONE, STAFF WRITER 
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH                    LENGTH:   34 lines

SHED'S CONTENTS SLOW FIREFIGHTING EFFORTS

Efforts to douse a $30,000 garage fire Saturday afternoon were hampered by a lack of fire hydrants near the structure and the presence of fuels and chemicals in the building, authorities said.

The blaze, reported about 1:30 p.m., occurred in the 1000 block of Reon Drive in a shed and workshop used by J&J Lawn Services.

Chase Sergeant, a fire department spokesman, said the first firefighters on the scene were confronted by heavy smoke and flames coming from the one-story structure.

Initial efforts to fight the fire were delayed for ``lack of water,'' he said, and because the contents of the shed - fuels, cleaning compounds and chemicals that included a 30-gallon container of grass killer - might have posed a hazardous-materials threat.

Sergeant said none of the grass killer leaked. ``However, exploding gas cans and a (20-pound) propane bottle did hamper the initial attack'' on the fire.

The fire was brought under control in about 15 minutes after two tanker trucks arrived to supplement water supplies.

The blaze was extinguished in about a half-hour.

Firefighters were able to keep the flames from spreading to another garage and a nearby apartment building, although the siding on one building melted off.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, Sergeant said. The damage estimate of about $30,000 includes the structure as well as numerous tools, power saws, mowers and other yard maintenance gear.

James Nobles of Virginia Beach owns the business.

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