Around 12:30 AM on Saturday, Fire Chief Matt Elrod received a phone call alerting him to an emergency. Despite severe damage to a local grocery store, firefighters successfully contained the fire, preventing it from spreading to other parts of the building. Nearby businesses experienced smoke-related damage.
Throughout the early hours of Saturday morning, firefighting teams from Royston, Hart, Franklin, Madison, and Elbert counties worked tirelessly to extinguish any lingering fires. Chief Elrod reported that over 1.3 million gallons of water were discharged onto the grocery store within a slightly longer than five-and-a-half-hour timeframe.
Unfortunately, one firefighter is currently receiving medical assistance for smoke inhalation, but there were no fatalities resulting from the incident. Chief Elrod mentioned that the fire seemed to originate in the rear right corner of Dills, close to the store’s produce department. An ongoing investigation is underway to determine the cause of the incident.