Storms spark fire at Truett-McConnell College gym

CLEVELAND - A couple of rounds of thunderstorms rolled through White County Monday night, and one of those storms brought with it lighning that sparked a fire on the Truett-McConnell College campus.

Cleveland Fire Chief Ricky Pruitt said just before 9:00 p.m. a fire was discovered in the gymnasium at Truett McConnell College. Several fire units were dispatched, but a security officer had the blaze extinguished by the time the fire department arrived. The security officer was taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center suffering from smoke inhalation.

Pruitt said it appears that the fire was started by a lightening strike that came into the electrical panel. The electrical panel received extensive damage and other parts of the gymnasium received heavy smoke damage.

In addition, emergency crews responded to reports of several downed trees in the city of Cleveland and around the county. In one incident, a tree fell on a carport south in the southern part of the county.