ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, July 13, 1996 TAG: 9607150075
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JONATHAN HUNLEY STAFF WRITER
People on Wasena Bridge might have thought the rocket in Wasena Park was taking off Friday afternoon.
One motorist reported seeing smoke rise from the rocket about 4:30 p.m.
The smoke actually was from a fire in a room of the former Virginia Museum of Transportation building off Wiley Drive. Firefighters contained the blaze in five minutes.
Roanoke District Fire Chief Thomas Tyree said the cause of the fire remains under investigation until samples from the scene can be tested.
Firefighters found paint cans in the room, and Tyree said spontaneous combustion was a possibility.
A fence gate near the building was found open.
Tyree estimated the damage at $5,000. The building is valued at $50,000.
The city of Roanoke owns the building, which is vacant. The Virginia Museum of Transportation moved out after it was ravaged by 1985 flood waters.
Opportunity Knocks, a state-funded program that helps young people find full-time work, used the building from September 1992 until January.
Roanoke Director of Public Works Bill Clark said there had been some talk of putting an environmental center in the building because of its proximity to the Roanoke River, but those plans are only a "dream" so far.
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