Firemen who watched throughout the night and poured water at times on fires which broke out in the ruins of the George B. Heyde building had only smoke to contend with Wednesday morning as work went forward to re-open streets and restore damage caused in the blaze which leveled the half-block structure early Tuesday.
Claude Turner, caretaker of the building which housed three businesses, said he had talked with owners Phil Heyde of Olney and Miss Georgia Heyde of Marion, but that nothing could be decided definitely until damage had been appraised. He said he was not able to estimate the extent of loss.
A rough estimate of about $200,000 had been given by insurance and real estate men Tuesday following the fire. Turner said it was possible the building would not be rebuilt and the lot would be sold. Plans for the burned-out businesses also were indefinite. However, it was reported the owners of the TVW men’s store were negotiating for space in which to re-open. The store was owned by Ralph Thaxton, Virgil Vaughn and Virgil Wilson.
When contacted following the fire, Dan Odum and Frank Hepler, owners of the grocery markets in the destroyed building, said they had no plans to re-establish their businesses. Odum had not learned by Wednesday morning if $500 in uninsured money in a safe had been destroyed. Fire Chief Herman May said no attempt had been made as yet to get to the safe in the still-smoking rubble.
After broken bricks and debris had been cleared away and the surface hosed down by firemen, North Market Street was reopened about 10:30 am Wednesday. City workmen using a “high lift” then set to work to re-open West Jefferson which had been closed by the north wall of the building which had toppled across the street and onto the Plaza Theater.
CIPS workmen had replaced a pole and transformers behind the ruined building by early Wednesday to restore service to the Marion telephone exchange which had been operating on power supplied by a portable generating unit used in emergencies. Fireman Clint “Nub” Boles remained on duty Wednesday morning. He said he was stiff and sore but apparently unhurt from being almost buried by bricks thrown at him by an explosion which knocked out the rear wall of the destroyed building.
Fire Chief May reported four 50 foot sections of hose had been destroyed in the fire and some other sections damaged. Police said four entire parking meters and four meter mechanisms had been wrecked beyond repair. May said the cause of the fire had not been determined. The taped and boarded up windows opposite the scene of the fire had extended to the Bob Brown Goodyear Store at 301 North Market St. by Wednesday where cracked windows appeared.
The store is opposite the Plaza Theater Building. The store front farthest from the blaze on the south to receive damage was the Kimmel Auto Supply. On the west side of the street and adjacent to the fire workmen on Wednesday were repairing the roof of the J.B. Heyde building. Firemen credited a firewall and use of the West Frankfort fire truck and the store received several thousand dollars damage from water it was reported.
The Roy Campbell Rexall drug store lost about $3500 in Christmas merchandise in the blaze. The goods had been stored on the floor above the TVW store, a spokesman for the drug store said Wednesday. No estimate of damage was available from other owners and operators of businesses which included the Montgomery Ward order store, the former Sears Roebuck store, Bill’s Liquor store, Carl Sorgen Studio and Lee Crouse Jewelry Store.
(Extracted from local newspapers and compiled by Harry Boyd, posted at http://www.marionfire.us )