Fire Destroys Ky. Apt. Building, Many Homeless

Dec. 21--A late night fire destroyed a historic building in Hazard on Sunday and left several people homeless.

The old Hazard High School building on Baker Avenue caught fire and burned nearly the entire interior of the building. The areas that were not burned are said to have extensive water and smoke damage. The fire began around 11 p.m. with fire crews arriving on the scene at 11:06.

The building served as the high school for 52 years from 1924 through 1976. After its closing the building was converted in to apartments with 30 in total. Just over half of those apartments were occupied.

The fire reportedly started in the basement of the apartment building and burned all the way to the top floor, eventually collapsing the roof.

The Hazard Fire Department fought the blaze for several hours.

"It was pretty good sized, it made for a long time. We were up there for seven hours," said Hazard Fire Chief Sam Stacy said on Monday. "And we will be going off and on throughout today."

No one was hurt in the fire as all of the residents were evacuated. The residents were taken to a hotel for the night.

At this time the cause of the fire is still undetermined.

"It will be a little while before they can determine that," said Stacy. "We have contacted the state fire marshal's office because they are the ones that have jurisdiction over multifamily dwellings such as apartments and things like that."

In the meantime, a meeting was held on December 20 at City Hall to help organize the donation and housing efforts for over a dozen families who lost their homes in the fire. Community Ministries, The Red Cross, and the Housing Development alliance hosted the meeting which was attended by around 50 community members, all of whom are willing to help find housing, food, clothing and Christmas Presents for the 16 families.

All clothing, presents, house wares, and hygiene item donations can be taken to the Hazard High School Library between the hours of 8 a.m. and 6 pm. Monetary donations can be made out to " The Old Hazard High School Fire Fund" and sent to Community Ministries 151 Miss Edna Lane, Hazard, KY 41701. Any medical supplies that may help with those with medical needs can be taken to New Beginnings near the hospital.

Scott McReynolds with the Housing Development Alliance said he was impressed by the outpouring of support from the community.

"This is an amazing response," said McReynolds. "I can tell you this is a great place to live."

Check the Hazard-Herald.com or the Hazard Herald facebook page for updates.