Firefighters throughout Avery County participated in a controlled structure burn off Hwy 105 in Banner Elk on Saturday, August 8th hosted by the Banner Elk Fire Department. A setup meeting was held at the Linville Ladder Company where a written pre-burn plan was reviewed. Eight Beech Mountain firefighters participated: Weidner Abernathy, Kevin Carr, Calvin Cole, Lucas Lychmanenko, Patrick O’Neal Jr., Ethan Suddreth, Alan Villanova, and Janet Villanova. Firefighter crews practiced their interior operation skills throughout the day. Linville, Fall Creek, Seven Devils, and Beech Mountain were among the VFD’s that joined Banner Elk. The final building burn was started at around 2 pm. The building was fully ventilated and burnt to the ground in just 45 minutes.