According to a report from DelmarvaNow, a 113-year-old three-story building in downtown Laurel, Delaware, was razed Wednesday afternoon after a raging fire heavily damaged the brick structure at around 1 a.m. No injuries were reported.
The State Fire Marshal’s Office is now investigating the fire at 130 E. Market Street. The fire was reported at about 1 a.m.
Arriving crews saw smoke coming from the building’s third floor. The flames then began to spread, shooting out of windows and rising several stories above the roof.
Fire companies from the surrounding region responded with mutual aid.
Laurel Fire Company spokesperson Mike Lowe said no one was inside the building at the time, and the second- and third-floor apartments were vacant and being renovated. The No. 1 Chinese Restaurant, on the building’s first floor, also was not occupied at the time.
Chief Deputy State Fire Marshal John M. Galaska estimated the total damages to be around $2 million. Several surrounding buildings were damaged by the flames. He also said that state fire investigators as well as agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were called to the scene and are looking into the origin and cause of the fire.
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