A huge fire destroyed a business near downtown Lawrenceville early Wednesday.
A two-story retail and office building at Artistic Builders Supply at 18 East Crogan Street was a total loss, but a building in the rear that held supplies was not damaged.
Gwinnett Fire Department Capt. Tommy Rutledge told the AJC that passers-by -- one an off-duty firefighter -- noticed the fire early Wednesday morning and fire crews arrived around 6:55 a.m.
He said firefighters attempted to enter the building but the heat was too intense, so they fought the blaze from the exterior. The fire was brought under control around 8:20 a.m., Rutledge said.
Rutledge said no one was inside the building when the fire started an no one was injured. He said the county sent in sand trucks because water from the hoses was icing over streets near the fire.
The cause of the fire is undetermined and under investigation, Rutledge said. Gwinnett fire investigators are being assisted by federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, he said.
C.E. Smith, the owner of the business, was on the scene and told reporters he had owned the business since 1966.
In 1988, another fire heavily damaged Artistic's warehouse just east of downtown Lawrenceville.
In that blaze, a 5,000-square-foot section of the warehouse containing wooden building materials was destroyed, while the company's showroom sustained heavy water damage.
Staff photographer Vino Wong contributed to this article.
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