Fire Ravages Clay County Building

WEST POINT, Miss. (WCBI) – A massive fire, with black smoke billowing in the air, was the scene for volunteer fire fighters in Clay County this morning, January 4.

The blaze took a while for crews to contain, one reason being the bitter cold.

The fire broke out at a building in West Point. Investigators say the structure used to be the Golden Triangle Cabinet Company.

Now all that’s left is charred debris, a wall completely reduced to ashes, and a roof singed from flames.

Northeast Clay County Volunteer Fire Chief, Torrey Williams says, he knew the situation was bad when his crew arrived at about 2:50 this morning.

“911 initially got the report of some smoke being in the area from someone passing by…we arrived on scene and there were flames showing actually…heavy flames….heavy flames from all sides of the building…so it was going pretty good whenever we got here,” says Williams.

The building burned hours after they arrived, and the air, relentlessly cold.

“When its freezing you not only have the water, freezing up, icing over. We have slick conditions and of course when water gets on your gear, its thin and there it is,” says Williams.

The unforgiving chill created patches of thin ice on the roadway.

Soon the frost began affecting responders, jamming gear and tiring them out.

Luckily an ambulance was parked close by.
“We have the ambulance here for what is called rehab, since it is so cold outside. So the fire fighters can take so many minutes, they get in there and they warm up.”

In the meantime, crews put out any remaining “hot spots” with the flames burning until dawn and firemen only having the peak of sun to keep warm.

The owner eventually requested crews allow the flames to burn out.

There was no one inside the building at the time of the fire.

The cause of the blaze is still unknown.

For the full video of our drone coverage click here.