The fire that destroyed a local, well-known house and church on North Garnett Street will be listed as having an undetermined origin.
City of Henderson Fire Chief Steve Cordell told WIZS News, “We are determined that it’s undetermined. We know the area that it started in. We are very confident in our investigation as far as area of origin, but, as far as the initial cause of the fire, that will be reported as undetermined.”
That is a permanent decision Cordell said. He said, “Unless something comes up or somebody comes up and gives us more information than what we were able to find at the scene, it will be an undetermined fire.”
Three representatives from the State Bureau of Investigation, three representatives from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Cordell investigated the blaze from 10 a.m. Tuesday until 5 p.m. Tuesday.
As Cordell explained it, the investigation was extensive.
The house was formerly a home place, later a funeral home and was presently a church. It was destroyed by fire overnight. The house was historic from a standpoint of its age, but also because of the well-known and respected families and organizations that have used it, including the Kesler family, the Flowers family and other present day owners.
No one was injured when the former Flowers Funeral Home Building at the corner of North Garnett Street and Hamilton Street burned.
Cordell indicated the fire started about 4 a.m. or 4:15 a.m. and was fully engulfed when fire fighters arrived.
There are pictures and comments on the WIZS Facebook page.
Another popular, local Facebook page, Remember When…(Reminiscing About Henderson, NC) has a video of the fire and a place to comment.