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Union County authorities said Tuesday they might never know what caused a fire last week that destroyed the clubhouse at Emerald Lake Golf Club in Stallings.
Union County Fire Marshal Neal Speer said investigators have not been able to determine the exact cause of the blaze, which left the $1.1 million facility in ruins.
The fire was reported shortly before 12:30 a.m. last Thursday at the clubhouse, off Lawyers Road. Crews from the Hemby Bridge, Mint Hill, Stallings, Fairview, Unionville and Providence fire departments battled the blaze, which took several hours to subdue.
Speer said Tuesday that investigators from the Stallings police, the SBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives helped in the probe.
But he said several factors prevented his office from determining the cause -- including the use of heavy equipment in putting out the fire; the severe damage to the building’s foundation.
Neighbors said they heard people setting off fireworks on the night of July 4 near the clubhouse, but other residents of the golfing community said it appeared as if the blaze had started in the kitchen area of the facility.
