The entire roof of a Crestline grocery store collapsed under the weight of snow this week.
The community, already reeling from major roadblocks and being snowed in amid a powerful winter storm, is now left without their local grocer, Goodwin and Son’s Market.
“We are the only grocery store in town, been there for 77 years,” Mike Johnstone, vice president of the market, said.
Other grocery stores are miles away, but reaching them has been almost impossible.
“Some of the more remote roads, could be a week or two before we can get back in there,” said a Caltrans representative. “We are trying to bring back extra resources which will accelerate that, but for now, they should plan for a week or two.”
In a statement to their “valued customers,” Goodwin and Son’s said the collapse was “too much” for the store to handle.”
The corner of the roof began to collapse around 4 a.m. Wednesday, while Johnstone and two others were inside.
They evacuated and called the fire department, as well as building and safety officials to assess the damage.
The rest of the roof came down around mid-morning.
“After a few tears were shed and a few moments to process the store that their father and grandfather built, they stood up dusted off and started to making calls to the insurance adjuster and contractor to get the ball rolling on the repairs,” the statement detailed. “Although we were unable to help service the community at this immediate time we WILL NOT let you down. We will work tirelessly to get back up and running even better than ever.”
Conditions are so severe in San Bernardino County mountain communities that California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency Wednesday to allocate additional resources as crews continue to work on reopening roadways.
California National Guard teams are heading to the region to help residents affected by the recent storm.