Abilene theater burns
By Tim Horan, The Salina Journal, Kan. | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
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It was the second historic
Fortunately, officials said, no one was injured.
"We have about 50 firefighters at the scene right now, probably five different departments," he said, including some from
Fire officials said they had a difficult time getting enough water to fight the blaze. They expected to be at the scene throughout the night.
Search for cause
A representative of the
Black smoke from the fire could be spotted from miles away early on.
At one point in the evening, onlookers said, flames were shooting about a story and a half above the building. The building burned until after
Apartment building evacuated
Firefighters had to hose down an apartment building just west of the theater, fearing that it would catch fire.
"If the walls give way and the fire load gets to that, then it could cause some problems to the apartment," Smith said. "But everybody is out of the apartments."
By
As news of the blaze spread on social media and through word of mouth throughout the evening, hundreds of people gathered to watch.
"I can only pray that it can be rebuilt," Berndt said, as she stood watching.
Similarities between fires
Many people spoke about the similarities between the Great Plains fire and the Kirby House fire: Both occurred about
Losing historic buildings
Many in the crowd mourned the loss of the building.
"We are losing our historic buildings, which is a sad, sad day to see," said Smith, who also had worked the Kirby House fire. "This is large."
"This is so important to the community. It really is," Berndt said. "It's very, very sad."
Berndt, a native of nearby
"We work in the tourism office and a lot of tourists want to go there," she said. "It's a professional theater and brings in a lot of revenue. It is the second-highest attended attraction in the town after Eisenhower (Library and Museum).
"It's a tragedy," she said.
A benchmark attraction
"It is the only professional theater between
He said that rebuilding the theater will be costly.
"It's an old building with a lot of different architectural features," he said. "I guess it is to be determined if that will happen or not."
'Cannot replace' building
"You cannot replace this building," he said. "It's going to depend on what's left of the foundation when it is done to see if they can do anything or not."
Smart also was the insurance provider for owners of the Kirby House.
"And I had the insurance on my own house when it burned down," he said. "It happens. That's what we are here for."
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