The Cardwell Furniture warehouse building at the corner of Cumberland Avenue and 20th Street in downtown Middlesboro was destroyed by fire Tuesday afternoon. Fortunately no injuries were reported and officials thank the quick response from the Middlesboro Fire Department and mutual aid from neighboring agencies for keeping the devastating fire from turning into a major tragedy.

“This very well could have been a block burner,” Middlesboro Police Chief Robert England said. “It could have turned into — we could have lost half a city block to a whole city block.”

Crews from the Bell County, Pineville, Harrogate, Tazewell, New Tazewell, CGNP/Tunnel, and Thomas Walker fire departments all joined MFD in responding to the blaze and while they couldn’t save the Cardwell building, they contained the fire within an hour and prevented it from spreading.

“We were blessed, the Lord was looking over us and helped us keep it right here,” England said.

“The incredible response by the firefighters who tackled this massive blaze was nothing short of heroic. Their professionalism, training, and skill turned what could have been a catastrophic event into a contained and managed situation,” Mayor Boone Bowling said. “These agencies worked seamlessly as a unified team, and their dedication to protecting our community will never be forgotten.”

Bowling shared on Facebook that the State Fire Marshal was in town for an unrelated investigation.

“For him to describe the work of our teams as ‘impressive’ speaks volumes about the caliber of our first responders,” Bowling added. “In addition to our firefighters, the contributions of our Police Officers, Street Department workers, volunteers, and countless community members were unbelievable to ensure our town was safe during this tragedy.”

Cumberland Avenue remains closed at 20th Street and will continue to be until further notice.

The fire started just after 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

Middlesboro Main Street Executive Director Celia Shoffner told WYMT that she witnessed the fire.
“The fire started high on the third floor and within just about an hour or so the facade of the building collapsed and it was absolutely devastating to watch,” she said. “(The building) was the first JC Penney in the state, it’s been a lot of things that hold a lot of memories for our community,”

Bowling said he is keeping the Cardwell family in his thoughts and prayers, since they lost their building and everything in it.

“They’ve been in Middlesboro longer than I’ve been alive and probably three or four of my lifetimes,” Bowling said. “If you hear something with one of those last standing true Middlesboro businesses, part of the heritage of our city, losing something like that is just heartbreaking.”

He also thanked the outside agencies who stepped up in response to the fire.

“Kentucky Utilities crews not only responded promptly to cut power for the safety of our responders but also worked tirelessly to restore service by 10:45 p.m. Meanwhile, Nexus (Middlesboro’s Water Supply) provided over a million gallons of water to ensure we had the resources needed to fight the fire in a time where some city infrastructures cannot handle that type of load,” he said. “Middlesboro, we are truly blessed with some of the finest employees, first responders, and support agencies. In the face of this tragedy, the way our community came together is a testament to who we are.”

The cause of the fire has not been determined. While Cumberland Avenue and some other roads in the area remain closed, most businesses are operating under normal hours.