Two Calhoun City fire trucks arrived to try to extinguish the fire from both sides of the large warehouse. (Abbey Lennon/Staff)
Walls began to crumble from the flames that erupted inside the Wheeler building. (Abbey Lennon/Staff)
Firefighters attempt to control the large warehouse fire on N. King St. in Calhoun. (Abbey Lennon/Staff)
The fire began Wednesday afternoon shutting down N. King St. and the railroads. (Abbey Lennon/Staff)
The fire started at approximately 4 p.m. on Wednesday and firefighters were on scene until approximately 11 p.m., according to Battalion Chief Chuck Poarch with the Calhoun City Fire Department.
North King St. was shut down for several hours, and according to Poarch, CSX was contacted to shut down the railroad tracks as well.
There were 25 firefighters on the scene along with a tower truck and two fire engines; there were an additional eight firefighters waiting at the fire station just in case backup was needed, according to Poarch.
The building was owned by Russell Smith, owner of Northwest Georgia Paving, and according to Poarch, was used to store hay, soil and erosion equipment.
Poarch said the reason the fire was so large and lasted for as long as it did was due to the contents of the building.
“With the nature of the fire there will be smoldering and smoke for the next couple of days, and we may have to take water down there for a couple of day,” Poarch said. He doesn’t expect the fire to spark back up though.
Poarch said the building was destroyed during the fire, and machinery was brought in after the fire had been extinguished to take out what was left of the building.
The monetary cost has not been determined at this time, and according to Poarch, it will take a couple of days to finish the detailed report.
“The cause is still under investigation,” Poarch said.
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