Building owner addresses fire in news conference

by Megan Thornton mthornton@cherokeetribune.com Cherokee Tribune

Vince Merolla addresses the press and public on Thursday about the fire that destroyed his office building on Sixes Road. The building, which housed eight tenants at the time, went up in flames 5 a.m. on March 5. It was one of the biggest commercial fires in the county in years. Cherokee Tribune/Todd Hull

Vince Merolla, president of Vince Merolla Enterprises, said he decided to conduct the event because he wanted to make sure the facts were presented and to let the public know that the ruined building is about to be demolished.

The building at 3440 Sixes Road near BridgeMill, which housed eight tenants at the time, went up in flames March 5 around 5 a.m. It was one of the biggest commercial fires in the county in years.

Since the fire, Cherokee County fire investigators released their findings that the cause of the fire was undetermined.

Due to the inability to completely rule out the possibility of an electrical causation within the area of origin, the cause of the fire is undetermined at this time, a report issued at the end of the investigation stated.

On Thursday, Merolla confirmed the cause of the fire as reported by the Cherokee Tribune.

The cause of the fire was determined to begin in the attic as electrical, Merolla said. However, because the fire was so intense and destroyed so much of the building, the only ruling available to authorities was undetermined.

Merolla told those in attendance Thursday that he has plans to clear the site next week.

Over the next five to seven days, well clear the site all the way down to the dirt and then my staff and I will start to plan out the rebuild of the building, he said, adding he plans to eventually build a replacement but has no time frame for the construction

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Building owner addresses fire in news conference