Community rallies behind Berlin business after devastating fire

Shattered glass, burned furniture, and boarded up windows, that's what is left of Attics Of My Life after a fire ravaged the Berlin store on Monday.

"I came around the corner and I just dropped. I saw the smoke. And I knew it was done," says Ashley Abell, the co-owner of Attics of My Life.

Tuesday morning, Abell checked on the damage, but to her dismay it was a total loss.

"All the tables that we built, all the items I salvaged. My heart and soul is in everything in there," says Abell.

Abell had just relocated her business from Selbyville to Berlin, and opened her doors last month.

"We closed our older store in February and it was pretty much Brad and I in there, 7 am until midnight transforming it," says Abell.

Hard work that other local businesses know all too well, which is why they are rallying behind her. The owner of Zenna Wellness Studio collected donations from one her classes to help them rebuild.

"Once you become a business owner here you become family and when somebody hurts we hurt. And with Ashley being directly across the street and doing such beautiful work we want to make sure she feels supported," says Chrissy Ehrhart, the owner of Zenna Wellness.

"They're sending me money from Canada and all over the world." says Abell.

Friends of Abell have also set up a GoFundMe for the business.

As for the future,  Abell says she will use the community's support to continue moving forward and rebuild.

As far as what caused the fire, the fire marshal's office investigation is still ongoing. We're also told the two units next to the store suffered smoke damage.