CHARLESTON, WV (LOOTPRESS) – An afternoon blaze spelled the end for a longstanding structure in the Kanawha Blvd area of Charleston on Wednesday.
Units with the Charleston Fire Department were dispatched to Kanawha Blvd late Wednesday afternoon in response to a fire call regarding an ongoing situation at Regal Apartments.
Dozens of residents were left without of home following the event, which fortunately has resulted in no reported deaths or injuries.
The location of the fire drew the attention of many Charleston residents in the immediate area, resulting in a flood of impromptu photos and live video feeds circulating on social media as the event was ongoing.
Due to the nature of the fire itself, units struggled to get control of the unrelenting blaze and Fire Departments units from South Charleston, Belle, Pinch, and Malden were also brought in to attempt to combat the flames.
The air throughout Downtown Charleston became thick with smoke once the fire was underway, drawing attention from nearby businesses and residences. Some operations even closed up shop for the day due to the intensity of the smoke emanating from nearby, including the Kanawha County Public Library located on Capitol Street. Some residents reported having been able to smell smoke from blocks away on Charleston’s East End soon after the fire began.
Fire department units combatted the raging blaze well into the evening, when demolition crews were eventually brought in level the four-story structure entirely, sealing its fate as a total loss.
Many of the aforementioned independently conducted live video feeds from residents in the area continued into the evening, and showed various stages of the demolition process during which the structure could be seen to still actively be burning.
The City of Charleston reports that the city is currently working with the American Red Cross who are in the process of conducting assessments of the building’s former residents who have now been displaced as a result of the incident. A temporary shelter has been erected by the Red Cross to accommodate those impacted.
Senator Shelley Moore Capito extended her thoughts to those affected by the event as it was ongoing Wednesday evening.
“Saddened to hear about the fire at the Regal Apartments in Charleston, but thankful everyone made it out alive,” said the senator. “Thankful for our firefighters and emergency services.”
