Heartbreaking.

That’s the only word to describe the devastation of last week’s fire that gutted a significant portion of Tappahannock’s historic district, resulting in millions of dollars in damage.

The Essex County community was shaken to its core late Friday morning as the fire broke out, destroying an entire city block before firefighters were finally able to get it under control. Businesses and residences were turned into little more than bricks and rubble in a matter of hours.

Though tragic, there are a few positive takeaways. The first, and most important, is that no person died. The only injuries were to several firefighters who suffered heat exhaustion. The only reported fatality was that of a house cat.

The second positive takeaway is the massive response from firefighters who came from all over to stand shoulder to shoulder with the members of the Tappahannock-Essex Volunteer Fire Department to battle the blaze. While we hope and pray that something of this scale...