KLTV 7 News Tyler, Longview, Jacksonville |Blaze destroys Jacksonville industrial building

Blaze destroys Jacksonville industrial building

By Sara Story - bio | email
Posted by Ellen Krafve - bio | email

JACKSONVILLE, TX (KLTV) - A fire engulfed and destroyed a warehouse building in Jacksonville Wednesday. The fire happened at 1120 North Bolton Street, right off of Highway 69.

"It's totally unexpected, even when you see a fire," said the warehouse's owner, Sammy Grimes. "It's not your place. It's always someone else's"

Now, Grimes' building is nothing but smoldering ash.

"When things bad happen, we seem to be the recipient," said Grimes. "So, we call it the family curse."

Paul White is the Jacksonville fire chief. He stumbled upon the fire a little after 10 Wednesday morning on his way to another accident.

"It must have been burning for a while because it was pretty involved," said White. "I'm surprised nobody called in."

The Grimes says he has no idea what could have started the fire. There were no utilities turned on inside of the building. The fire chief says it was a suspicious fire.

"People in this building next door had seen someone run from this building," said White.

Anita Magee works next door. She says she didn't see anything out of the ordinary, but described the fire.

"When it started getting to this portion here, you could hear explosions - just small ones," described Magee. "The walls started to collapse and fall in. The flames were just shooting way up."

Despite the damage, the crew is thankful no one was hurt.

The fire chief says if anyone saw suspicious activity near the warehouse Wednesday morning, they should contact the Jacksonville Fire Department.

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