BRISTOL, Va. (WJHL) -- Three historic buildings on the former Virginia Intermont College campus have been engulfed in a heartbreaking fire.
Alums, former staff, and students are heartbroken when they see the place they once called home in shambles.
"It's sad to see the devastation," Pam Lemons Davison, VIC alumna and former professor, said. "I mean, [there's] broken glass everywhere; I can still smell the smoke."
"It's just heartbreaking," said Deridre Cole. "And it gets you in your throat."
Cole practically grew up on VIC's campus. Her mother, Deanna Cole Roberts, taught dance at the college. Cole was also a student.
"I treasure it," Cole said. "The history, everything from the wood to the banisters to the furniture, all the things, the architecture. And it's gone."
"We always have those memories," said Roberts. "Those memories will always be in our hearts and in our souls; no one can take that away."
The campus has sat vacant for over 10 years and was just deemed 'blighted' by the Bristol Virginia City Council. Davison said that while the fire saddens her, she isn't surprised.
"Just knowing that it's empty and abandoned," said Davison. "Of course, something's going to happen. I mean, it just makes sense that it [was] going to happen."
As the smoke begins to clear and the campus becomes vacant once again, alums believe it's time for something to be done.
"I think it's up to our legislatures and our city to see how they can preserve what's left," said Cole.
"I hope it's the wake-up call," Davison said. "The company needs to do something, make something of this. Make something that we, all the alumni and the former professors [and] the staff that we can all be proud of and say we were a part of that when it was thriving."
"Let's save this," said Roberts. "Let's save our history. History is important."
The Bristol, Virginia, City Council met in a closed session on Saturday to discuss the future of the campus. There's no word on what's next.
The cause and origin of the blaze are still under investigation.