No Injuries In Highway Dept Building Fire

The cause of a fire that destroyed a Cocke County Highway Department garage Tuesday is under investigation. Cocke County Fire Chief Cody Keys says the fire broke out around 10:30am and then there was an explpsion about an hour later. Multiple fire departments including Cocke County and Newport plus various volunteer fire departments responded. Keys sasys there are mulitple things that could have caused the explosion, including propane tanks.

All had been evacuated from the building, so no injuries were reported. The Keurig Dr. Pepper plant across the Pigeon River from the Highway Department garage was evacuated as a precaution. The fire was brought under control around 1pm. All that had been evacuated were allowed to return to homes and businesses.

The building that was destroyed was damaged during the flood caused by Hurricane Helene last September. The county had been waiting on FEMA for funds to repair it.