EARLE, Ark. (WMC) – A fire in Earle, Arkansas, has devastated the city’s main street, destroying businesses and leaving only one operating shop standing.
The community is already facing a number of problems, and must now deal with more following the devastating fire.
“I don’t have the words in my command to really say the pain I feel, just numb,” Stacy Abram said.
For Abram, the buildings he worked inside represent years of work, dedication to his community and history, now lost.
The master electrician and Vietnam veteran has been in business since the 1990s, and like many others, told Action News 5, he is sad to see what’s become of his community.
“Earle was so busy 70 years ago, but now we the last store,” Charlie Young said. We the last of the mom and pops stores, so without us, I mean Earle would really be in bad shape.”
Charlie Young’s family-owned grocery store is celebrating 80 years in business this month.
His grocery store was spared, but the building where he holds Christmas decor for the city was not.
“The mayor came to my house, knocking on the door 3 o’clock in the morning, scared me to death, it scared everybody,” he said. [I was like] what in the world is going on, and he say Stacy Abrams’ store is on fire because he knew that was my store [next door].”
“It’s a big blow for the community,” Earle Mayor Jaylen Smith said. Now what our administration has to do is go back to the drawing board and re-create downtown Earle, and where the main strip is. We did have a plan – we’re working with the chamber in Memphis to actually put a plan in place to revitalize and revamp our downtown area.”
But, Mayor Smith says, infrastructure must be addressed first.
“We’re working actually now toward ANRCD to get these funds secured so that we can start actually fixing that and putting that problem behind us,” he said. This administration has always been committed to the community about transformation and building a better chapter of this city.”
For Young and Abram, it’s about keeping hope alive and their community moving forward.
“All I can do is just put it in Jehovah’s hand and keep going forward,” Abram said.
Earle Mayor Jaylen Smith says, they’ve been working with Memphis on revitalizing their downtown.
But infrastructure, he says, must be addressed first.
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