KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Update 11/5 at 9:38 a.m.
The Knoxville Fire Department says that fire crews are continuing to wet down hot spots. The impacted building, identified as the Elnathan building, was too dangerous to leave standing and has been torn down due to safety issues, KFD says.
KFD says that the building is over 100 years old and has not been used by Knoxville College in several years. There was no power to the building at the time of the fire. The building will likely be turned back over to the school sometime later today.
Investigators are actively following up on leads and ask that anyone with information on the cause of the fire anonymously call 865-637-1386 or 1-800-762-3017.
----
The Knoxville Fire Department said a former administrative Knoxville College building burned down Monday evening.
The fire first broke out around 8:30 p.m. Monday. KFD said a heavy fire was showing when crews arrived, and they began "defensive operations" with master streams to contain the blaze.
As of Tuesday morning, crews are still working to put out hotspots.
KFD spokesperson Mark Wilbanks said although the building was a total loss, he did not expect the fire to spread beyond the building.
He said the building was over 100 years old and no injuries were reported. He said its cause was under investigation. There is no indication that anyone was in the building when the fire began. He also said crews were working through issues with poor water availability near the Knoxville College campus.
"It's a sad day for Knoxville," said Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon. "Knoxville College has a long history of education in our community."
A member of the college's board of trustees said the building had been secured and people could not get in. He also said he believed the fire was set by a person, although KFD said its cause was under investigation. He also said the board would continue working towards re-accreditation.
Kincannon said the former administrative building had not been used in "a long time." She and Wilbanks also expected crews to continue responding overnight to safely put out the fire.
Knoxville College is East Tennessee's only Historically Black College or University.
In February 2023, crews also responded to calls about a fire on the Knoxville College campus. However, that blaze was extinguished within 10 minutes of crews responding to the call. The fire reported on Monday was significantly larger.
More information, such as the cause of the fire, was not immediately available. This story will be updated when more information is available.