Emergency personnel responded to reports of a structure fire at 497 Hazel Street in Centre, just after 9:00am Thursday. 

As firefighters arrived on the scene they witnessed smoke billowing from the rooftop – and, within moments, fire erupted from the front of the building around the roof.  The blaze was quickly brought under control and fortunately, it appears no one was home at the time.

Sadly, a dog belonging to the occupants of the residence did die in the fire. 

The structure suffered a significant amount of damage – and, after a thorough investigation, Centre Fire Chief Jeremy Lee said the fire apparently started with the dryer.

Those responding to the scene included: The Centre, Cedar Bluff and Leesburg Fire Departments, Floyd EMS, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office and Cherokee Electric Co op.  Chief Lee would also like to thank both Centre Police Chief Kirk Blankenship and Investigator Randy Mayorga for their assistance.