Pressure washing business owner Matt Horn, 32, of Shelbyville, Kentucky found his work truck engulfed in flames as he drove to a local job last Wednesday.
Mr. Horn owner of Complete Wash Pressure Washing, told Window Cleaning Magazine, “I was heading to a job in Taylorsville when the gauges went nuts. Smoke filled the cab then by the time I got it pulled over the fire was coming out from the dash and up the windshield.”
What must have been a frightening ordeal for Mr. Horn he went on to explain, “…nobody was hurt and the Fire Department was there in just minutes after calling 911.”
As a matter of fact, the Firetruck had already spotted the burning inferno on I64 West between exits 32 and 35 before they were dispatched. Luckily they were traveling the opposite way down the Interstate. Amazingly, one of the fire crew that attended just happened to be the brother of Matt Horn.
Greg Horn was amazed at finding his brother as a victim of the vehicle fire he was dispatched to.
The speedy attendance helped save some of Mr. Horn’s equipment, however, he lost his 12V Roof Cleaning System with varied other items. The loss of equipment was around $1,200 dollars excluding the truck.
While Mr. Horn waits for the insurance on the truck to come through he was totally surprised to find he had become the recipient of kind donations that flooded in from the pressure washing community.
“All the guys in the industry banded and put together $1,720 dollars in donations! My equipment supplier, Russ Johnson of Southside Equipment in, Shepherdsville, KY also gave 200 dollars in store credit. He is my local equipment supplier and it was a really nice gesture for me to get whole again.”, said Mr. Horn, “ … donations raised $1,500 in only a few hours!”
“I believe there were 40 people who raised donations in all. Sean Kilgore added an additional $200 credit towards replacing equipment and supplies”.
Jamie Schmidt who owns a Facebook group called Pressure Washing Motivation started the community pledge. Mr. Schmidt owns a company called Greenway Pressure Washing, in Cherry Hill, NJ, and his FB group is for washers to motivate each other and share experiences. The Facebook Group began life in September 2017 and now has a following of nearly 3,000 members with what looks like solid community spirit.
Follow that Facebook Group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/224352508099281/
Mr. Horn is genuinely taken aback from the generosity and he has told Window Cleaning Magazine, “They have already closed the fundraiser down per my request due to its fast success, I want to thank everyone that helped.”
A family member has lent Mr. Horn a truck in order for him to continue his business until the insurance company settles on the claim.
On returning to the burnt-out truck, Mr. Horn managed to salvage his completely toasted wallet. $240 dollars in cash was destroyed, however, he was able to recover his Mom’s ID who passed away in 2007.
( Pic below Left) Jamie Schmidt of Pressure Washing Motivation Facebook Community and (Right) Matt Horn