Fire Destroys Well-Known Broken Arrow Furniture Store

<small>EDITOR'S NOTE: Pictures of the fire at Lanham's Furniture were taken by KOTV employee Dave Crowley.</small><br><br>A family-owned business that's been a part of downtown Broken Arrow

Tuesday, December 21st 1999, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

EDITOR'S NOTE: Pictures of the fire at Lanham's Furniture were taken by KOTV employee Dave Crowley.

A family-owned business that's been a part of downtown Broken Arrow for 20 years was destroyed by fire Tuesday afternoon. The owners of Lanham Furniture lost everything in the fire which broke out around 12:30pm. Smoke poured from the building as firefighters continued to douse the flames. Fire department officials say because of the storeâ€™s content, the fire spread quickly and the building was completely gutted. The fire sent a plume of black smoke into the air that could even be seen from downtown Tulsa. No one was hurt in the blaze.

It was a long day for Wynn and Pat Lanham and their daughter Mary. All three were in the store when a man came running in the store and yelled that the building was on fire. The Lanham's watched helplessly as firefighters battled the raging flames. Within what only seemed like minutes, years of their hard work went up in flames.

Green Country knows the Lanham's as "the boss" and "TV star" in their television commercials. The TV spots portray Mrs. Lanham as the wife who does all the work. It is an image they had a good time building.

Mrs. Lanham told the News on Six she's emotionally hurt by the blaze. â€œIt's a lot to see 19 years go up in smoke,â€ she said. Lanham says her faith in God and good friends are getting her through this terrible ordeal. She believes her family will be able to rebuild their business.