Lightning was the likely cause of a large fire that tore through a Mt. Juliet strip mall overnight.
Strong storms moved through middle Tennessee and southern Kentucky on Tuesday afternoon and continued into the night.
Fire officials were called to a strip mall on Lebanon Road in Mt. Juliet around 2 a.m. Wednesday.
3 businesses damaged by smoke and water, and 1 church suffered most of the fire damage in the strip mall here @NC5 pic.twitter.com/pGB1kiQ7pg
— Kimberly Davis (@NC5_KDavis) May 11, 2016
When crews arrived on the scene, 50 percent of the complex was engulfed but by the time they got out their gear, the entire building went up in flames.
The fire appears to have originated from the roof.
Officials said the preliminary investigation shows that lightning was the cause of the fire but an investigator would have to confirm that.
