Knoxville College's loss of historic Elnathan Hall to fire comes amid recovery effort

 The fire that erupted on Knoxville College's hilltop campus Nov. 4, with flames clearly visible from downtown, left a 126-year-old building in ruins and supporters of the historically Black college mourning the loss.

Well into the next day, hours after the Knoxville Fire Department was called to the blaze that ultimately destroyed the college's Elnathan Hall, firefighters were still pouring water to douse hotspots in the rubble while fire investigators worked to determine how the fire started.

The loss of the historic building comes at a time when the college was struggling, with most of the buildings on its campus - including Elnathan Hall - closed and unused for years. The college has been pushing to regain accreditation after having lost it 27 years ago, and a search is underway for a new president.

The private historically Black college was founded in 1875 by the Presbyterian Church and has important connections to Knoxville's civil rights history. In recent decades, the college has struggled with debt, low enrollment, the closure of its buildings and the loss of its national and state accreditation.

Investigators seeking source of the fire

Towering flames and smoke were already visible when the fire was reported to 911 around 8:30 p.m. Nov. 4, KFD said in a news release.

Firefighters were hampered initially by the lack of a functional water system on the vacant campus and had to run hoses uphill to the fire, which caused water pressure problems and required the assistance of tanker trucks, Knoxville Fire Department Assistant Chief Mark Wilbanks told Knox News.

The fire was so large that crews couldn't enter the building and had to battle the flames from the exterior.

After walls partially collapsed in the fire, the City Service Department knocked down the rest to prevent the remaining walls from falling over on first responders.

A city excavator was digging through rubble by late morning Nov. 5 with a fire department investigator nearby.

"I can't say that for 100% right this moment, but there is a strong likelihood (that the fire was man-made)," Wilbanks told Knox News as the investigation continued Nov. 5. "Until I have an investigator come back to me and say we know that someone started the fire I can't say that, but there is a strong likelihood that is the case based on what we know now."