Firefighters from multiple jurisdictions Battled a structure fire at a large vacant industrial building in downtown Rossville.
Walker County 911 received a call around 2:21 a.m. on Tuesday, stating a tree was on fire near the Rossville Athletic Association gym. When fire crews from Rossville responded, they discovered the blaze was actually at the old Coats American building on Maple Street and was already about 30 percent involved.
Over a dozen units from Walker County, Catoosa County, East Ridge, Georgia Department of Corrections, Trenton and Hamilton County provided assistance to help get the fire under control, which took about five hours.
Fire officials estimate about 75 percent of the building is a total loss, but report no injuries at this time.
The vacant building did not have any power. The cause of the fire is currently unknown. Walker County’s new Accelerant Detection Canine Team will investigate once the building is safe for them to enter.
Firefighters will be at the site all day dousing the 240,000-square-foot building with water. The building’s roof collapsed, trapping flames underneath the rubble.
Because the fire remains active, several roads in Rossville will be closed to through traffic on Tuesday. They include portions of Maple and Williams Streets, Walnut Street and the 700 block of Flegal Avenue.