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No one hurt in fire at county jail

By LEE WILLIAMS
lwilliams@TheCitizenNews.com

Smoke from a burning clothes dryer filled the Fayette County Jail Wednesday, prompting city and county fire officials to spring into action.

Firefighters responded to the jail located off Johnson Avenue about 9 p.m. Wednesday and rushed to the laundry room to douse the dryer fire. Fire crews had to work in adverse conditions as a heavy downpour of rain from Tropical Storm Cindy rolled in.

Maj. Robert Glaze, the director of technical services at the jail, indicated inmates guarded by deputies were doing laundry in the laundry room when the power went out. One of the dryers was being used at the time and the clothes in the dryer grew hot and began to smolder.

On Wednesday, at least five emergency vehicles surrounded the sprawling jail that opened in February 2003. The flashing emergency lights dotted the night sky as rain pellets pounded the crews.

The immediate concern was whether fire crews would have to evacuate the jail that is built to house 384 inmates. But Fayette County Department of Fire and Emergency Services Director Jack Krakeel indicated Wednesday an evacuation would not be necessary.

“We don’t evacuate unless we have to,” Krakeel said in between taking and making calls on his emergency radio.

Once the fire in the laundry room was extinguished, crews propped open the doors of the jail to allow the smell of burning wires to escape from the building.

One of the dryers was destroyed, but the fire was contained, Glaze said.

“The damage was limited to the dryer,” Glaze said.

No injuries were reported in the incident.

“Fayette County Department of Fire and Emergency Services, as well as the City of Fayetteville Fire Department, did an outstanding job,” Glaze said.