$6-Million Fire Destroys Building : Van Nuys: A faulty heater at Castle Precision Industries is suspected. The structure housed equipment to make landing gear.

A fire that may have been touched off by a faulty heater destroyed a building housing a Van Nuys manufacturer of airplane landing gear Wednesday, causing at least $6 million in damage, according to firefighters and company officials.

The fire at Castle Precision Industries was reported just before 4 a.m. and had engulfed the building at 7737 Kester Ave. when firefighters arrived, said city Fire Department spokesman Pat Marek.

Marek said 100 firefighters battled the flames for more than 90 minutes before extinguishing the blaze at 5:44 a.m.

There were no injuries.

Marek said the loss to the building was estimated at $1 million and damage to the contents was estimated at $5 million.

Marek said firefighters had not yet identified a cause, but company President William Windette said fire investigators indicated to him that a gas heater caught fire and the flames quickly spread through the roof.

Windette, who met with employees outside the burned-out shell of the building Wednesday night, said sophisticated pieces of equipment used in the manufacture of landing gear were destroyed. Castle sells landing gear for military and commercial uses around the world and annually ships $18-million worth of equipment to customers, he said.

Windette said the fire left 120 people without jobs. He said several employees had volunteered to work for free to rebuild the business.

The company has fire insurance, but Windette at first said he was not sure if the firm would rebuild. Minutes later though, he seemed to make up his mind.

“We will build it back up,” he said.