UNION, WV (WVNS) – The Monroe County Courthouse caught fire on Saturday, January 11, 2025.
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A state worker noticed smoke emanating from the courthouse’s windows at 3:30 a.m. This state worker, in turn, notified local authorities. Local fire departments promptly responded to the call and saved the courthouse. However, there were still some damages inside the building, according to County Commissioner Kenny Mann.
“We have been working on redoing the courthouse due to problems – just an old building. We finally got grant money and the governor’s office helped. We were just a few months away from from having this project completed. This will be a setback, but no lives were lost and nobody was injured. That was the greatest thing,” said Commissioner Mann.
The fire broke out between the second and third floors of the courthouse, even affecting the new courtroom that was under construction.
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The building’s sprinkler system may have aided firefighters in putting out the fire, but its activation did additional damage to the building.
Minor water damages have been reported around the courthouse, as well as the new courtroom’s insulation in the ceiling. No damages were reported in the Upper Record Room – which is home to the county’s “precious records”.
The water from the sprinklers did make its way to the downstairs record room, housing older records.
“There was some water damage to them. [ServPro] has a technique that they use to where they they freeze the records and their dry-out process puts them back to where almost original state,” said Commissioner Mann.
ServPro is aiding in cleanup at the courthouse, thanks to the County Commission gathering shortly after the fire and voting to declare a County State of Emergency. This declaration helped them get quicker help as they bypassed the bidding process required by law.
“[The] government will not shut down here. We just have to maybe relocate to other places on our complex here, too, for a few weeks,” clarified Commissioner Mann. “Rather than that, business will [go on] as usual. We just have to maybe relocate to other places on our complex for a few weeks.”
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The fire is under investigation, as its cause remains unknown.
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