It’s been three weeks since a massive fire ripped through the Ellis Brothers Furniture building on Water Street in Binghamton, and engineers have now determined that the building is in danger of imminent collapse and must be torn down. The business hired an outside engineer who agreed with the city engineer’s assessment that the building needs to be demolished, and the company will be paying for the cost to bring the building down. Demolition will likely take place in the coming days, and beginning Wednesday, Water Street between Court and Henry streets was closed as a precaution. That stretch of road will likely remain closed for at least a week while demolition and debris removal takes place. Boscov’s and the Water Street parking ramp will remain open even while the street is closed, and pedestrian access to business along Water Street will also remain open. The building caught fire on April 30th and it took firefighters several hours to battle the flames. Smoke from the fire caused several nearby schools and businesses to be evacuated. An investigation by the city fire department is ongoing.
