Published: March 26, 2008 05:51 pm      

UPDATE: Blaze engulfs businesses

DANVILLE — The sky above downtown Danville was filled with smoke this morning as firefighters battled a blaze at Danville Bookworld at 109 N. Vermilion St. The fire also destroyed Briars and Brambles at 105 N. Vermilion St.

Firefighters got the call about 10:17 a.m., and the building was fully engulfed when they arrived. Several engines responded, and firefighters with a ladder truck were attacking the roof at press time.

Power was shut off to the area.

The Vermilion County Courthouse is closed for the remainder of the day due to the downtown fire.

At first, there were concerns that someone was inside the building, but those concerns were dismissed after a search. Medix was called to the scene, although there have been no injuries reported.

Police cars blocked the road from North to Harrison Street. The smoke was so thick that spectators couldn’t see past North Street.

Danville Bookworld moved into the site once occupied by Two’s Company just last September. It had been located at 1501 N. Bowman Ave. for 25 years.

The bookstore attracted customers with its inventory of more than 100 comic book titles and used books. Part of the business also was dedicated to games.