ASH RIVER — When Mark Hraban dug through the rubble of what was once the main lodge at Ash Ka Nam Resort, he figured all he would find would be charred memories and painful reminders of the unthinkable loss.
Then, a friend pulled from the debris an iron horseshoe that once hung above the bar at the Ash River resort that burned to the ground Jan. 6.
“It was fully intact,” said Hraban, who owns the resort with his wife, Lynette and daughter, Mindy. “Everything else was ruined, but that darn thing made it.”
The horseshoe gave Hraban hope that even though all may now seem lost, the family can rebuild.
“We’re strong,” Mindy told The Journal last week as she, her parents and oldest daughter sat around a table at Mark and Lynette’s home, reminiscing about the good times shared at the resort they’ve owned for nine years. “We’ll get through this and we will rebuild. We have it.”
Early struggles
The family admits coming to grips with the tragedy has been difficult – especially at this time of year. January and February are typically busy for northern Minnesota resorts that thrive from winter recreation.
On top of entertaining hundreds of customers, the Hrabans would usually be spending the first two months of the year cleaning cabins, restocking inventory and enjoying the hustle and bustle of the winter business.
Instead, the family has spent the last seven weeks working with their insurance company, making lists of everything lost in the fire and waiting on St. Louis County officials to tell them when and where they can rebuild.
“That lodge was the face of Ash Ka Nam,” Lynette said. “We put so much into it.”
Up in flames
The morning of Jan. 6 started like any other Tuesday. Around 6:30 a.m., Mark made the way from his house about a mile from Ash Ka Nam to Mindy’s home adjacent to the resort property to pick up her two youngest daughters for school.
“I actually took my time that morning,” Mark recalled. “The wind was blowing away from the resort, so I didn’t see smoke until I got right up there. As soon as I saw the fire, I was in shock.”
Everyone else was, too.
While trying to make sense of what was happening, a distraught Mindy had a hard time convincing Lynette the family’s livelihood was going up in flames.
“I didn’t believe her,” Lynette said. “I really thought she was messing with me.”
That wasn’t the case.
As the Kabetogama Fire Department arrived, the family could only watch nine years of memories turn to ash.
“The weekend before (the fire) was New Years,” Lynette said. “That is one of our busiest weekends. We had just reopened for the winter. All of our charges were in there, all of the cash, our tips. Everything.”
Although the state fire marshal is unsure of exactly what caused the fire, the Hrabans said they were told the culprit was likely something electrical behind the bar. It could have been an Apple iPhone charger, they said.
“We were told those are a leading cause of fires,” Mindy said. “That’s what they think may have started it.”
For several days after the fire, hot spots would send flames shooting up from the rubble, reminding the family of the devastation.
“We cry, a lot,” Lynette said with a half smile. “We had just been in there the day before. We were so excited to finally be back to work after closing in October. We’d been working so hard.”
Breaking the news
The owners were forced to call their customers with the news, and they said about 90 percent of the reservations were canceled.
“We still have our close family customers coming,” Mindy said. “But a lot of people canceled.”
What makes the reality even more difficult is watching those customers fulfill their winter vacation plans by staying at other resorts in the area.
“I don’t want to lose our regular winter customers over this,” Lynette said. “Seeing them other places is hard, but we want them to enjoy themselves, so we do expect them to go elsewhere. We just miss them.”
Just as hard
Several of those customers are also struggling with loss, the Hrabans said.
Last week, Mark said he was heading toward the area where the lodge once stood when he noticed a car parked in front of it. Inside was an 88-year-old woman from Kabetogama who celebrates her birthday every year at Ash Ka Nam.
“She told me she wanted to come for one more birthday,” he said. “She had tears just rolling down her face. It was hard.”
From her front window, Mindy has watched large groups of snowmobilers stop and stare at the vacant lot on the river, she said.
“It’s sad to watch them take this so hard,” she said. “It makes it worse.”
Strong support
The support the family has received from their customers, family, friends and International Falls businesses has only encouraged them to pick up the pieces and trudge forward.
“We sent the permit into county and (commissioners) meet March 12 and will tell us what we can and can’t do,” Mark said. “As soon as we get the OK, we’ll start.”
There will, however, be challenges with the rebuild. According to the Hrabans, several aspects of the former lodge were against current codes.
“We were grandfathered in on a lot of things,” Lynette said.
Features like the bathroom not being handicap accessible and the proper storage will all need to fit into what once was a 40-foot by 50-foot building.
“It was small,” Lynette said of the lodge. “Now everything we need to rebuild has to be twice the size, but our building has to be the same.”
But, like the fire, it won’t stop them.
“We’ll have something for our guests this summer for sure,” Lynette said, adding there is the option to renovate the resort’s banquet hall into the bar and restaurant area.
“If we do that, it’ll give us more room to dance,” she said.
