THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, August 5, 1995 TAG: 9508050281
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Short : 30 lines
Officials were still investigating Friday the cause of a fire that consumed a 1942 blimp hangar in Weeksville early Thursday.
The building, one of the world's largest wooden structures, also had contained the world's largest operating blimp. Damage was in the tens of millions of dollars.
Pasquotank County Fire Marshal Tom Memolo, who spent the day at the scene, could not be reached for comment. He said Thursday he did not expect to be able to look closely at the still-hot building until next week.
"We got a bunch of people down there investigating," said Eddie Meekins, ground systems manager for TCOM L.P., the hangar's primary tenant. "They haven't even let us back on the property yet."
Company officials said Thursday that a worker's blowtorch was a possible cause of the fire, which began around midnight at the top of the 120-foot hangar doors.
Meekins said TCOM officials were working to move the bulk of operations to the company's ground systems building in Elizabeth City. That will mean moving about 30 employees to the facility, he said.
KEYWORDS: FIRE by CNB