Volunteer fire departments throughout Jones County had their hands full Wednesday, battling separate blazes in Ellisville and several brush fires. The long day began around 2:30 a.m. when flames destroyed a former rehabilitation center on Augusta Road in Ellisville. The building, owned by a north Mississippi resident, had been in the renovation process for several months.

Dan McKenna, Jones County fire coordinator, said the cause of the fire was still under investigation as of press time. “On arrival of the first apparatus, the front of the building was fully involved,” he said. “The fire quickly spread from the front of the u-shaped building into the two wings. Union (Volunteer Fire Department) was the host department with Moselle, Johnson and Ovett responding for help. We requested three additional tankers from Glade, Southwest and Macedonia in Forrest County. We were finally able to contain it around 11 a.m.”

McKenna said the department is still trying to get in touch with the owner of the building, who apparently lives out of the region.

The fire caused a disruption in power for neighbors who had to flee for their own safety. Brittany Simmons, who lives with her fiancé and young son, said smoke coming from the structure was so bad that her family couldn’t breathe.

“We put everybody in the truck and went out by the road,” she said. “You could hear explosions and the flames were twice as high as our trailer. My father, William, actually got a water hose to put the fire out coming up the bluff. There are ashes all the way up to our front door.”

Simmons said a close relative who stayed the night at their house was the first to report the fire. “He had made a pallet in the living room floor,” she said. “When the air conditioner kicked off, he knew something wasn’t right. I’m just glad no one got hurt.”

Ricky Amacker, a neighbor who helps look after the property, said he believes the fire was set. “The owner was afraid of people stealing things, but I bet he never believed anything like this would happen,” Amacker said. “There were fire trucks coming from all over.”

Other incidents Wednesday included a car fire in Ellisville and at least two brush fires. One such fire affected approximately 20 acres on McDonald Drive off Holifield Road, and required the assistance of the Mississippi Forestry Commission and local units from M&M, Glade, Ruston and Sandersville. Soon after, fire departments from Johnson and Ovett as well as forestry officials responded to a two-acre brush fire off Ira G. Odum Road in Ellisville. McKenna said four firefighters were treated with heat injuries after the 20-acre blaze.