ATF investigates Opry fire in Nashville

The pending investigation of the Little Nashville Opry has gained the attention of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The national task force arrived in Brown County on Wednesday.

The Saturday night fire that turned the Opry into a burnt-out infrastructure has been under investigation since Sunday morning.

When the fire started, all attendees of Saturday night’s show had already left the premises, and nobody was injured in the blaze.

The task force will be working in conjunction with the State Fire Marshall, the Brown County Sheriff’s Department and the Brown County Volunteer Fire Department.

Agents flew in from across the nation as far as California, said Jim Rose, the resident agent in charge.

The task force includes a chemist, fire protection engineer, electrical engineer, arsenic detection K-9 unit, explosive specialist, excavator and evidence custodian.

“We go into the fire scene, and process it not unlike an archeologist – layer by layer,” Rose said.

Following Wednesday’s task force briefing, the ATF special investigation began around 8 a.m. Rose estimates that the investigation should last a few days.

ATF’s labs are the world’s best for investigating fires and explosives, Rose said.