Fire destroys nonprofit in Bath County
OWINGSVILLE, Ky. (WTVQ) – A nonprofit in Bath County was destroyed in a fire Friday afternoon. Crews say some roads were closed in downtown Owingsville while first responders battled the fire at Christian Social Services on Coyle Street.
Firefighters say Christian Social Services was like a “local Goodwill”, where families could pick up anything they needed to live. The fire department says this is a huge loss for the Owingsville community.
“There’s numerous families that depended on this, whether they suffered from a fire themselves or any kind of loss,” says Owingsville Fire Chief Chris Hall. “Whether it was somebody donating items in need or somebody coming to get items they needed, a lot of people depended on this not necessarily business but, more or less, this family that supported the community.”
Owingsville Fire Department says around 2 Friday afternoon, a neighbor called saying they saw smoke coming from the building. Crews say years’ worth of donations like bags of clothes, furniture and toys added kindling to the fire. Firefighters say the second story collapsed onto the first creating three to five feet of debris. While the initial fire is put out, the fire department works diligently to make sure it doesn’t re-ignite.
“Everything is sandwiched on the first floor so we’re really just going through with excessive amounts of water, copious amounts of water, due to the excessive debris three to five feet deep trying to avoid what we call a rekindle,” says Hall. “We just try to make sure it’s out and reduce any hazards.”
The fire department says the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
