Missouri Division of Fire Safety: Cause of state-building fire in Jefferson City undetermined
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
A new report shows the fire that destroyed a state building on Monday evening in Jefferson City caused at least $2.5 million in damage. According to the report, the cause of the fire is undetermined.
Officials say the fire at 1621 E. Elm Street was an isolated incident and there have been no reports of injuries or fatalities.
The report lists the cause of the fire as undetermined and states that investigators could not eliminate that the fire originated on the roof or within the attic portion of the structure. Investigators determined that fire damage to the interior of the building was caused by a “fall down burning from the attic level” of the building.
According to a press release from the state, the damage assessment and estimated loss amount from the privately-owned building and contents is $2.5 million; however, this does not reflect the state's total equipment loss.
One person ABC 17 talked to said she was a state employee. Said they were able to recover a lot of items.
Bernard Groner and his company, P&G Development, have owned the building since the mid-70s.
Groner said the demolition process is slow to start, but he hopes to make some progress once he gets approval from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
"Right now we're in the process of making sure there's no asbestos in the building," said Groner.
According to the report, the building was insured for $1.91 million. Groner says his group will notify the state once it decides what to do with the building, but he knows his group will take a loss.
"We don't have that much insurance so we're probably gonna have a loss somewhere along the line and we don't know what it gonna cost to clean it up so we don't know financially where we stand at this time," said Groner.
The Missouri Division of Fire Safety (DFS) completed and delivered its cause and origin report on the fire to the Governor’s Office and the Office of Administration. The Jefferson City Fire Department had requested DFS assistance in the fire investigation.
