The Ross County Engineer’s office, near the fairgrounds, is fully engulfed in flames.
Firefighters were unable to access the building due to a locked gate. This delayed their response attempts by appx 15-20 minutes.
The building is said to be a vehicle storage area. It is unknown what types of county vehicles are stored inside.
Firefighters are now attempting to keep the fire from spreading over to the administration building.
Update 02/04/21
County loses millions in the fire, state fire marshal investigating
Ross County lost millions of dollars in property after a fire tore through a building used to store large vehicles.
According to Charles Ortman, the county engineer, the fire ripped through a detached building at his main offices Wednesday night. Inside, he said, were five dump trucks, several pickup trucks, welding equipment, mowers, and more; all were a total loss, Ortman said.
The state fire marshal is investigating the fire to determine the cause; a spokesman with the state said investigators remained on the scene Thursday morning and that it is too early in the process to know what started the blaze.
Several fire departments battled below-freezing temperatures well into the morning hours as fuel and rubber fed the inferno.
