breaking news
[img align=left]http://www.nbc25.com/main/uploads/sabraham_1155050051_morgancourthouse-fire.gif[/img]Local residents watched on the streets for hours as a demolition crew tried to save what they could of the historic courthouse.
"Its a beautiful building, well it was a beautiful building. Its really a shame," said Page Buch, a Morgan County resident.
The impact of the fire reached even further than the local community. West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin also stopped by to express his condolences.
"The courthouse plays a tremendous part in the growth, the organization and the orderly conduct of business, Were here to make sure the people know they will not be disrupted," said Gov. Manchin, (D) WV.
When firefighters arrived, flames had already spread through most of the historic courthouse. It completely wiped out courtrooms and the county clerks office, leaving only remnants of the buildings facade intact.
"There was fire blowing out the second floor windows and out on to the two other sides of the building," said Chief Steve McBee, Morgan Co. Special Ops.
A sheriffs deputy on duty in the building next door made the initial call to rescue workers just after 4:30 a.m. Once it was determined no one was inside, attention quickly turned to the thousands of historic records housed here.
"All of our records from 1820 forward are located in that record room. All the land records, death records, marriage records," said Glen Stotler, a Morgan Co. Commissioner.
The sheriffs department and county prosecutors office also sustained some damage but county officials said the majority of records were not compromised
Although the courthouse itself may be a total loss, local residents said they know it could have been much worse.
"Thirty-two years ago this month on the opposite corner is when the hotel burned so its kinds dejavu for a lot of us," said McBee.
Now community leaders will be working to find a temporary place to relocate court house operations and rebuild from the loss they say has hit them so hard.
Reported By Angelique Gonzalez"
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