Andrews – A new detail regarding a fire at the former Hillbilly Mall off U.S. 19/74 came to light after Cherokee County Commissioner Cal Stiles and his wife, Janet, purchased the property.
Town officials believe the previous administration cut the water supply to a nearby private fire hydrant amid suspicion that someone was using it without permission and not paying the bill. After United Bank in West Virginia foreclosed on the property in November, they declined to restore water to the hydrant, according to town officials, who say the bank was worried about water damage from a sprinkler system inside the building.
Lack of water to the hydrant forced firefighters to pump water out of a nearby creek to extinguish the blaze, which ignited about a month after the bank foreclosed. Stiles believes lack of water to the fire hydrant caused more damage to the building.
“A dry hydrant is not worth a whole lot when you have a fire,” he said. “That caused more extensive
damage.”
At the April 21 Andrews Board of Aldermen meeting, lawmakers voted to restore water to the hydrant at no cost to Stiles, although he has no need for water in the building.
“I don’t feel like I should have to pay a water fee to have a meter on for fire purposes,” he argued. “I feel like it’s in the best interest of myself and the town to supply water to the hydrant in case there is an emergency.”
Stiles purchased the property last month for half of what the bank sought at the foreclosure sale on the steps of the Cherokee County Courthouse in downtown Murphy. Since then, he has removed the plethora of tires left behind, cleared brush and trash, and gutted the inside of the former Bear Ridge Mall.
New detail emerges in mall fire
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