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Local fire departments and the Valley Police Department were called a fire late on Thursday night, at the Galaxy Auto Salvage in Valley, the 3300 block of Columbus Road. 

According to Chief Mike Reynolds of the Valley PD, the salvage yard was engulfed in a “massive fire.” Large plums of smoke and flames were seen by passing drivers around midnight. 

The investigation into the cause is being conducted by the Valley PD and the State Fire Marshall Office. Reynolds said there were no injuries and the property that was damaged were some of the salvaged cars. The cause of the fire is undetermined currently.

“Right now we’ve got several theories but nothing concrete to back them up yet,” Reynolds said.

However, Reynolds said they are looking at the potential of arson, along with other non-intentional causes. 

“If it is arson, if it was deliberately, it takes us working hand in hand with the fire marshal’s office to pull all that together. Those types of investigations usually take a lot of time. Especially with something that big. There’s a lot of ground to cover,” Reynolds said.

He explained that investigators have to take samples from the entire site to find out how the fire started, possible accelerants, and how it spread. 

“We are talking about a salvage yard where the derelict vehicles probably still have remnants of gasoline and other flammables around. So it’s gonna take a bit of time to put the puzzle together on this one,” Reynolds said.