United States (North Carolina) - Investigators from local, state and federal agencies hope to get inside the fire-ravaged Carolina Tire Sales of Chadbourn building sometime today to try to determine what sparked the stubborn blaze late Monday. A small number of firefighters remained at the former Ithaca sewing plant facility on North Wilkes Street late Tuesday, said Columbus County Emergency Management Director Jeremy Jernigan.

"They are pretty much mopping up," Jernigan said.

State air and water quality officials were monitoring the fire Tuesday, Jerngian said.

"They found no danger to the community on air issues," Jernigan said.

There are some water quality issues, some runoff into a ditch, that they are taking steps to mitigate.

Investigators from the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the State Bureau of Investigation and the Columbus County Fire Marshal's Office will be working to determine the cause of the fire, said Chadbourn Town Manager Stevie Cox.

More than 150 firefighters from 36 fire departments responded to the 11:45 p.m. alarm late Monday and early Tuesday, Cox said.

Every department in Columbus County responded, with additional trucks and personnel from Bladen, Brunswick, Robeson and Horry, S.C., counties, Cox said.

More than 1,000 gallons of fire retardant foam, typically used for petroleum fueled fires, was expended on the blaze during the night, with "tens of thousands of gallons of water" pumped from city and county water lines.

"That's knocked it down pretty good," Jernigan said.

Nearby Chadbourn Middle School was on a two-hour delay Tuesday because of the fire and smoke, Jernigan said.

Battling the blaze was a challenge, Jernigan said.

"This has been a bear," Jernigan said.

Written by The Fayetteville Observer