Firefighters battled flames at a north side business for hours Tuesday night near 76th Street and Appleton Avenue.
The fire started in the basement of the building just before 6 p.m. and firefighters were on the scene for more than four hours.
Karen Long, owner of Garden of Eden Kingdom Living, was devastated after the fire ripped through the northwest side of the building.
“My whole life. My computer. My freezer, my products. You name it, it's in there. That's where I make everything,” Long said.
Long makes natural seasonings, sauces and dressings in the upstairs business. She invested everything into it.
Crews said the fire started in the basement and spread fast.
“We withdrew our firefighters in an orderly manner from the building and switched over to a defensive operation which is what you see now,” said Deputy Chief Terry Lintonen.
The lower level was a restaurant called Irie Palace that closed. It was recently bought and it was being turned into a different restaurant. That owner is on his way to Milwaukee from Florida after getting word of the fire.
