ELIZABETHTOWN, N.C. (AP) -- An unknown electrical malfunction started a fire that destroyed seven businesses in downtown Elizabethtown this week, officials said.
The fire started in a gap between the ceiling and the attic above the office of the Tienda Hispana store, said Agent Joe Lenczyk with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The Elizabethtown Fire Department plans to bring in an electrical engineer to pinpoint the cause of the fire, which spread through the attic space shared by the businesses, Lenczyk said.
The fire destroyed the Tienda Hispana, the Christian Science Society, Isley's Construction Co., Adonai Capilo Salon, the Centro Hispano de Bladen, Flora's Hairstyling and Underwood Upholstery.
Bladen Tire Co. had water damage.
The fire consumed most of the block of South Poplar and West King streets. Officials estimated the damage at nearly $1 million.
No one was injured.
Agents with the ATF, the State Bureau of Investigation and officials with the Elizabethtown Fire Department walked through the burned structures Tuesday to determine the cause of the blaze.
Business owners also returned to site to sift through debris.
Andrew Gatica walked around piles of twisted metal and charred wood to see what he could salvage from his business, the Centro Hispano de Bladen. Gatica found a box of soaked books used for English as a second language classes at the center.
He opened the center a year ago to provide services for Hispanics. Gatica said he was trying to make the center a nonprofit organization.
The three Hispanic-owned businesses did not have insurance. Gatica said he plans to provide services at his home until he can find a new office. Gatica and the other Hispanic business owners worked together to get their businesses running, he said.
``These buildings were empty this time last year,'' he said. ``We basically started with nothing. We all pulled together. We had a lot invested.''
Members of the Christian Science Society will have to meet in the home of the building's owner, Elizabeth Rodig, until a new location is found. The church opened five years ago on Poplar Street.
``We have room in our home to carry on,'' she said. ``We are a very small group.''
Employees at Bladen Tire Co. were busy Tuesday morning cleaning the garage. Smoke and heat damaged the office, said Powell Cross, who manages the business.
His family has operated the tire service store since the early 1950s, he said. Cross hoped the building would pass inspection so it could reopen.
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