Jonesboro fire spouts smoke, shuts down streets

Smoke billows could be seen billowing from two blocks away from a fire in downtown Jonesboro at 7 a.m. Friday, July 31, 2015,
Smoke billows could be seen billowing from two blocks away from a fire in downtown Jonesboro at 7 a.m. Friday, July 31, 2015,

Jonesboro fire crews are fighting a blaze Friday morning that is blocking a large part of the city’s downtown and sending thick plumes of smoke into the air. No injuries have been reported.

Fire crews arrived before 11 p.m. Thursday on the scene at 411 Union St. in Jonesboro after a report of a commercial fire, according to Jonesboro E911.

“The large structure is still actively burning,” Jonesboro E911 Director Jeff Presley said in a statement, adding that “several fire crews and apparatus” are on the scene.

A large part of downtown Jonesboro is blocked off as firefighters work, Presley said. “Very heavy black smoke” is cloaking the area south of the fire, he added. The Craighead County Courthouse and annex closed Friday until further notice "due to smoke infiltration in facilities making working conditions unsafe," officials said in a Facebook post.

The burning building on Union Street contained loft apartments, small shops and spas and will be a loss, he said. Businesses at that address include Eden Medical Spa and Boutique and Noah The Children's Boutique; both said on social media that they are closed until further notice.

Several off-duty firefighters were called in to help and allow firefighters to be rotated in and out of the scene to protect them from heat exhaustion, Presley said.

"We're going to be out here for quite a while. This is an older building. It's been remodeled several times,"  Jonesboro Chief Kevin Miller said in a statement. "It's going to be very time consuming, very labor intensive. We're going to be out here for quite a while."

Map

411 Union St., Jonesboro

411 Union St., Jonesboro

Upcoming Events