Fire Completely Shuts Down Beloved Edwards Virginia Ham Smokehouse

The acclaimed ham makers will be closed for "an undetermined amount of time."

Tragic news out of Surry, Virginia today: A devastating fire at the S. Wallace Smokehouse broke out this afternoon, ceasing operations of the legendary Edwards Virginia Ham purveyors. According to local news outlet Wavy, the fire broke out in the processing facility around 12:40 p.m. and while the plant was active at the time, nobody was harmed. All operations have ceased indefinitely, and per the Edwards Twitter, "damage is still being determined."

This is awful. Sad news from Surry VA today. https://t.co/RQ5LbCsvag Edwards family are friends, (cont) https://t.co/AAWFqseScw

— Andrew Zimmern (@andrewzimmern) January 20, 2016

The ham makers have been in business for over 75 years. Family-owned and operated under the leadership of Sam Wallace Edwards III, Edwards is known for hams that have become a favorite of big-name chefs like David Chang, who serves the ham at Momofuku Ssam Bar in New York City. WTVR notes that Edwards is one of the biggest employers in Surry County.

Following this disaster, the voicemail at Edwards notes that no new orders will be accepted. Below is the statement from the Edwards website:

Due to a tragic fire, we will be closed for an undetermined amount of time.
We'd like to thank the community for supporting us and local first responders for their heroic work.
We're eternally grateful everyone here is safe.

Thank you all for your continued support and prayers. We'll provide more updates soon.

The Edwards Team

Video: Surry County smokehouse goes up in flames

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