3 businesses relocate after destructive fire in Brownsville

BROWNSVILLE, Tenn. — Three West Tennessee businesses are forced to relocate following a destructive fire.

“We’ll try to get out what we can,” Jacinda Chapman with the Salvation Army of Haywood County said.

Soot-covered sinks, melted clocks and destroyed offices are left behind Thursday for employees and volunteers to sift through.

The Salvation Army, the Tennessee Career Center, and Southwest Human Resource Agency are impacted by the fire.

SWHRA said they’ll begin relocating Tuesday to the Haywood County Courthouse.

Staff said they don’t anticipate any services like utility assistance to be interrupted. “We have the same numbers, so they can just call us or come right up to the courthouse and pick up where we left off,” said Lillie Boyd with SWHRA.

Two doors down, the Salvation Army said they’re not as fortunate. Staff said the nonprofit’s community pantry and thrift store are temporarily closed.

Employees say it’s unclear what will happen to the community-owned building.

Firefighters have not said what the official cause of the fire is. Employees said it may have started from a paper shredder in a back office of the career center.