‘No criminal intent’ suspected as investigation continues – The Laurens County Advertiser

Clinton, South Carolina – The fire on Musgrove Street in downtown Clinton remained under investigation for a week after the blaze ripped through several businesses on Tuesday, August 27.
Officials said the investigation had found “no suspicion of criminal intent,” but the cause of the fire, which caused millions of dollars in damage downtown, had not yet been determined or announced.
“We needed to talk to a lot of people and staff, so SLED offered to help, and we agreed that would be a good idea,” said Clinton Fire Chief Donya Langston. “There was no suspicion of criminal intent, but you get a lot of different opinions and viewpoints, so SLED continued to conduct interviews as we tried to determine the cause and origin of the fire.”
Both fire and insurance investigators have been on site since Tuesday following the fire that destroyed or caused varying degrees of damage to six different historic buildings on Musgrove Street.
Now, however, the waiting game begins as officials and investigators continue to “search for the why and the how,” Langston said. “With every incident, there are many stories, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that’s how the fire started.”
Langston said the fire started in the rear of the House of Pizza before 5 p.m. on Aug. 27, but investigators are still needed to determine the details.
This work was still in progress since the middle of last week.
Firefighters also found that the fire quickly spread to three other buildings, damaging two more.
“The call came in at 4:57 a.m. and we were on the scene within two minutes,” Langston said. “By the time we got there, it was already a major fire.”
The back patio was underwater, Clinton Fire Department Chief Jeremy Marshall said, and there was an arc in the power line above.
While calling for the power to be turned off in the building, they began flooding the front of the building.
“We got the water flowing out the back but couldn’t get any closer until the power was turned off. In the meantime, we tried to gain access from the front but things deteriorated pretty quickly,” Marshall said. “By the time we got there, the fire was already in the basement and spreading to the eye doctor’s office. We don’t know exactly what started it but it was an uphill battle from the start.”
The department took water from additional lines to have enough water for the large area, but the fire spread too quickly through the attics and basement. Public Works Director Brison Taylor stated that 1.5 million gallons of water were used on the evening of the fire. Fire at a rate of 4000 gallons per minute.
All buildings have what firefighters call combustibles, such as tables, chairs and couches, Langston said. But historic buildings with wood frames, wood floors and tables have a very high amount of combustibles and the fire can spread quickly.
Firefighters left Wednesday morning, but were called back Wednesday evening for minor flare-ups at the House of Pizza and before 4 a.m. Thursday morning at the Kingdom Building.
Light was visible through the roofs of several buildings and, although not quite as extreme, Hoyt Hanvey and Freshens of Presbyterian College were also affected.
“Fences were put up Wednesday night to prevent people from getting too close,” Langston said. “The remaining walls of the remaining businesses are not safe. Their stability is compromised. We did not want anyone to get hurt and we needed to keep people away until the investigation was complete.”
While state and federal agencies responded to the fire, others were also called in to assist with the investigation.
Friday’s investigation was primarily focused on House of Pizza, so State Farm’s insurance investigator was on site because that insurance provider represents the company.
However, since several companies are involved, the investigations are likely to continue this week.
“Each company has its own insurance provider and each insurance company has its own investigators,” Langston said. “Because multiple companies are involved, Chief Marshall and I will meet with the fire investigators from each company’s insurance investigators. They will also conduct their own investigation and come to a conclusion.”

First published on page 1 of the Wednesday, Sept. 4, edition of the Laurens County Advertiser. Edited to add comments from Utilities Director Brison Taylor.