Fire damages Athens lumber yard

By Joe Johnson

Firefighters Saturday morning battled a blaze that destroyed a commercial building in westside Athens.

The fire was at the Hogan Lumber Company at 325 Tallassee Road, where it destroyed what appeared to be a lumber storage barn, according to Nate Moss, a battalion chief with Athens-Clarke County Fire and Emergency Services.

"It appears to have been a defensive operation due to the heavy volume of fire throughout the structure," Moss said.

Athens-Clarke County issued a 7:08 a.m. Nixle alert that most lanes of Tallassee Road at Westchester Drive were blocked to traffic.

The area had yet to be cleared as of 11:15 a.m., as fire crews searched for smoldering fires, according to Moss.

The fire's cause was not immediately known.

"Homeless had been setting up camp there," Moss said. "camp there. "So far, no injuries reported."