According to County Fire Chief Donny Green, the state fire marshal has determined that the fire at the Highland Cove Condominium complex Monday morning, as well as a fire in another building, was caused by lightning.

Firefighters were called back to the complex Wednesday when a maintenance worker discovered that a room on the third floor of the building next door to building H, which suffered nearly $1 million in damage from the blaze, was unusually hot. Members of the DeKalb County Volunteer Fire Department found an open flame from a ruptured natural gas line between the floors of the second building.

Green said that firefighters discovered that lightning had run in on the gas line between the second and third floors, rupturing it, and that there was an open flame burning between the concrete floors of the building. The fire had apparently been burning since late Sunday night or early Monday morning. After turning the gas supply to the structure off, the fire died, and the building suffered only minor damage.

Members of the Main Station, Cookeville Highway, and Liberty stations responded along with the tanker truck, DeKalb EMS, the Sheriff’s Department, and an agent of Tennessee Fire Marshal’s Office.