Historic Merced County building being demolished after fire
Crews are working to demolish a historic Merced building after it was destroyed by a fire.
MERCED, Calif. (KFSN) -- One of the oldest buildings in Merced is now just a charred shell of its former self after a destructive fire on Monday.
Burned bricks and charred wood now cover the ground where Merced County's first high school was built.
Some walls were still standing on Tuesday, but the hollow shell is a somber sight for many residents.
"This is very insane, I'm surprised, it's very depressing. I've known people that actually went to this high school," said Merced resident Garland Daniel.
The nearly 130-year-old building went up in flames around 6:30 am Monday.
"Units arrived on scene, had smoke showing from the second floor. Within 10 minutes, they had fire coming out of those windows," said City of Merced Deputy Fire Chief Thomas England.
The three-story structure posed a threat to firefighters, so they fought the flames from outside the building.
Later in the day crews started to tear down the historic building because of concerns it would collapse and damage nearby facilities.
Historic building goes up in flames in Merced
Then around 5:30 Monday night, an excavator got stuck in the front of the building.
"They climbed up the stairs and went down to the basement, so it happens. But then the larger excavator pulled them out," said England.
Thankfully, no one was hurt.
Crews from the Merced City Fire Department responded to more hotspots later in the night, finally wrapping up around 11:30 pm.
The fire damage and demolition - leaving a shocking sight for neighbors.
"I know since I've lived here and I've had clients that actually went here, it was always impressive just to go by," said Daniel.
The building stood in this spot since 1897.
Once students outgrew the school, it was remodeled into a library and used until the 1970s.
It remained mostly vacant other than yard maintenance equipment used by public works.
Merced County spokesman Mike North said the building became unsafe to use in recent years.
"There was talks about possible restoration, but the building is so old, it takes so much money to make that happen, really, it was not feasible at that time and obviously the situation now," said North.
North said the county's main concern is public safety.
Construction crews will tear down the rest of the building and clear the space.
But there's no decision yet on what the county will do with the vacant lot.
Action News spoke with the construction company off camera. Crews doing testing inside the building, but eventually the walls that are still standing will come down.
There's no timeline for when that will happen or when they will be finished with the cleanup here.
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