ROME, Ga. — Fire investigators are still working to figure out why the historic courthouse in Rome caught fire earlier this week.
Although the building suffered major damage, Alma Roman McCool says there are still reasons to be grateful.
“A great way to say thank you. We can’t say enough,” McCool said.
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On Thursday, she provided a meal for Rome-Floyd County firefighters who took on the towering inferno Monday afternoon.
“What was it like to walk in there?” Channel 2’s Berndt Petersen asked Floyd County Tax Commissioner Kevin Payne.
“It was a little emotional. That has been my home for the last 20 years,” Payne said.
Payne entered the burned out building Wednesday to retrieve the county’s cash, and his employees’ personal items.
Fire investigators are now examining photographs taken by their drones that they flew into the most dangerous nooks and crannies of the 134-year-old building to figure out what caused this.
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“From my experience, yes. I think it started high,” Fire Battalion Chief Greg Abbott said.
A renovation had been in progress and the county released photos taken of the contractors at work.
Meantime, lunch was served courtesy of McCool. Her insurance office sits in the shadow of the historic, but dreadfully damaged, courthouse.
“This is our emblem, our logo. This is Rome,” McCool said.
County officials say an informed decision on whether the building can be saved should come next week.
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