Furniture Gallery catches fire; damage limited

Furniture Gallery caught fire Tuesday evening, but Blytheville firemen limited the damage to the building, which is part of the Day Shopping Center at the corner of Moultrie and Sixth Street.

Around 5:40 p.m. Tuesday, authorities evacuated Hays Grocer and other shops inside the shopping center for precautionary reasons, as smoke poured from the top of the building.

No injuries were reported.

Capt. Scott Edwards of the Blytheville Fire Department signals from the roof of a smokey Furniture Gallery on Tuesday evening.

"When we arrived, heavy smoke was coming from the structure," Fire Chief Mike Carney said. "We felt like it was between the ceiling and the attic. After further investigation, the guys located a fire in the center part of that building. It was up in a storage area in an upper level."

He believes an electrical shortage in a storage room caused the fire.

However, Carney said the building suffered only minor damage.

"They did a heck of a job; they stopped it," Carney said. "If it would have gotten up and rolled across that attic..."

He does anticipate smoke damage to the building and some of the products inside it.

"What I saw, there was minor damage to the interior walls, the aspenite wood sheeting," he said. "I don't know what all was in there, but really minor damage. There will be smoke damage."

Carney added firemen had a difficult time moving the smoke because of the structure's size and narrow openings.

The chief said Hays had some smoke in its building and Health Department officials are expected to arrive Tuesday night.

mbrasfield@blythevillecourier.com