Downtown Corbin apartment complex damaged by fire; residents evacuated

Approximately 30 residents at a downtown Corbin apartment building were forced to evacuate the building just before Midnight Tuesday when a fire was sparked in a storage room.

Corbin firefighters were called to Cooper Health Apartments at the intersection of Main and Gordon streets when a fire alarm was activated.

Battalion Chief Larry Jones stated the fire was sparked in a small storage room off of the main office on the first floor by some type of electrical malfunction.

Corbin Fire Chief Barry McDonald said a sprinkler head broke off sending water pouring onto the fire, extinguishing it.

“There was nothing but smoke in the apartments,” McDonald said, noting firefighters broke out several windows and set up fans to ventilate the building.

The residents were outside for almost two hours while firefighters performed salvage and overhaul.

“It used to be an office, but we don’t even use it,” said Dora Mobley, Director of the Corbin Housing Authority, which owns the building.

Damage was estimated at $10,000.

The sprinkler system had to be shut down because of the broken sprinkler head. With the system down, maintenance personnel had to establish a fire watch until it could be repaired.