Following a structural engineer’s visit Friday, two Brookhavenbusinesses remained closed pending permission from their buildings’insurance companies to reopen after an early Thursday fire indowntown.

Professional engineer Kenny McGrath, of Spencer Engineering,toured the Brookhaven Cycle and Sport Schwinn shop building, aswell as Bardwell’s Alterations Shop, with building owners and cityofficials to determine if the buildings were safe for insuranceinvestigators to enter in coming days. The buildings that housedthose businesses, and four others that are closed indefinitely,were heavily damaged in Thursday’s fire.

McGrath’s investigation keyed on whether the buildings wereleaning or if there was structural damage to any of the walls orinfrastructures.

“We have insurance people coming, and we couldn’t allow them inthe building until we knew it was safe to enter,” said Mayor BobMassengill.

BFD Chief Bob Watts said the engineer also looked at Bardwell’sAlterations Shop.

“Everything was fine down there,” he said.

McGrath had no comment on his findings.

BFD Fire Inspector Andre Spiller said McGrath suggested thatinsurance investigators should be the ones to make a call onwhether the businesses will be able to reopen.

“There are other people who need to see the damage before we canmake that decision,” Spiller said.

Officials said the damage to the business appeared minimal underthe circumstances.

Officials are waiting on insurance companies’ decisions as towhether the burned storefronts should be torn down or renovated, astearing them down could possibly damage the structure of adjoiningbusinesses.

Watts said the inspector for the Posey Place’s insurance companyhad come to the scene Friday to see if he could determine a causeof the fire. The inspector, however, has made no officialstatement.

The state is expected to send an inspector back on Tuesday orWednesday, Watts said.

Regarding the status of The Posey Place, Tri-County Finance,Louise’s Family Fashion, and Brookhaven Electronics, adetermination must be made as to whether the structures of theburned buildings are safe enough to leave standing. Some structureshad begun to come down on their own Thursday before the city sent atrack hoe to take down the most dangerous parts of thebuilding.

“For now we’ll keep the streets blocked off from in front of thebike shop to the end of the street, and some over on the otherside, too,” said Watts.

Police Chief Pap Henderson said the areas are blocked for safetyreasons and should not be used by motorists for any reason.

“If we’ve got it blocked off, they are not to try to drive thereor park their cars there,” he said. “We are very serious aboutthis.”