Fire in Kilmarnock leaves one dead, destroys apartments and businesses

Rear view of damaged buildingsWatchful Eye (All rights reserved)

*On-scene reporting

Numerous apartments and businesses were left in shambles Tuesday after an early morning fire ripped through a stretch of buildings along Irvington Rd. in Kilmarnock.

One person was reported dead. According to CBS6 News, the individual's body was found in a downstairs, studio apartment of one of the buildings, but authorities didn't provide any information about the identity.

The fire was first reported around 3:40 a.m., and firefighters were on the scene within three minutes, CBS6 also reported. But the response lasted for hours.

Initially, a large section of downtown near the incident was cordoned off with a series of street closures. But, the heavy smoke could be seen moving across the dark sky, and odors from the blaze were in the air blocks away from the scene.

Augusta St. is blocked off by Kilmarnock Police DepartmentWatchful Eye (All rights reserved)

Four fire departments, including three from Lancaster County and one from Northumberland responded to the incident. After daybreak, once the fire was extinguished and the perimeter around the scene was relaxed, the devastation was visible from all sides of the parcel where the affected buildings sit.

The glass doors to several of the shops were shattered, and inside of shops, such as Barkley's Boutique and C&D Music, there were scenes of pure devastation.

Barkley's Boutique on Irvington Rd.Watchful Eye (All rights reserved)

All of the affected businesses along the strip, which just one day before had been functioning operations, were left with orange notices stating they were unfit for habitation and use is now prohibited.

C&D Music on Irvington Rd.Watchful Eye (All rights reserved)

Updates will be provided as additional details emerge.

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