An extended-shuttered administration constructing on the struggling Knoxville College, a traditionally Black establishment, was destroyed in a hearth Monday evening, officers stated.
There have been no accidents within the blaze that erupted at round 8:30 p.m. ET on the Tennessee campus, which has had its buildings boarded as much as stop break-ins and fires, Knoxville Fire Department Assistant Chief Mark Wilbanks stated.
“This constructing’s most likely in extra of 100 years previous. It has fully collapsed and is a complete loss,” Wilbanks stated on the scene of the hearth, video from NBC affiliate WBIR of Knoxville confirmed.
The reason for the hearth was not recognized Monday evening, he stated.
Knoxville College is a small traditionally Black school and college, or HCBU, based in 1875.
It misplaced its nationwide accreditation in 1997 amid slumping enrollment. It was allowed by the state to renew programs in 2018, however these have been on-line, the Knoxville News Sentinel newspaper reported in July, as the school seeks to regain its accreditation.
Buildings on the campus have been boarded up, together with the previous administration constructing that burned Monday, and there was a historical past of break-ins and fires on campus, Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon stated on the scene.
“It’s only a unhappy day for our metropolis,” Kincannon stated.
Frank Shanklin, Jr., a member of Knoxville College’s board of trustees, instructed WBIR that the previous administration constructing has not been used within the final 40 or 50 years.
“We’re going to maintain preventing for Knoxville College,” Shanklin stated, including that he hopes the town, county and folks within the area preserve it of their prayers. “We’re going to to struggle to re-open the school again up.”