TRAVERSE CITY -- A downtown Traverse City building that was built in the early 1900's was destroyed Monday by fire. The old barn sat along Eighth Street across from McGough's and burst into flames around 2:40 a.m.

Witnesses reported flames shooting at least 15 feet high off the roof of the building. The farm and lawn supply business leased the building for storage. Traverse City Fire Chief Jim Tuller says there was fertilizer stored in the building and they decided to let it burn to protect the Boardman River which runs just a few hundred feet away.

"We knew that there was an old chemical fertilizer in there that would compromise the river if the runoff got there. We decided to protect exposures and let the fire build up a significant heat column and let everything burn up and out," said Tuller.

Besides destroying the barn the fire also damaged a house next-door. The heat caused the siding to peel. At this point there is no word as to what started the fire, but we do know that there was no power running to the building. An investigation is still underway.