Video: Fire Destroys Artesia Building in Lowndes County

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ARTESIA, Miss. (WCBI) — A 100-year-old piece of Lowndes County history burns to the ground.

Volunteer firefighters spent more than two hours Wednesday morning battling a fire at a 4,000-square-foot wood-frame house at the corner of Ellis and Railroad streets in downtown Artesia.

Lowndes County Fire Coordinator Sammy Fondren said the old home was divided into three apartments. A bystander said the residents of one apartment were home but escaped unharmed when the fire started at about 8 a.m. The others were not at home.

Fondren said he was told the house was at least 100 years old.

The fire spread quickly and the house was a total loss.

Lowndes County volunteer firefighters got help from two trucks and volunteers from East Oktibbeha County. Several firefighters were treated for heat exhaustion.

Investigators are on the scene trying to determine a cause.