A winery in northeast Hall County was destroyed by a fire Wednesday afternoon.
Hall County Fire Rescue officials said they were called to Sweet Acre Winery on Bill Wilson Road near Alto just after 1:00 p.m. and found the three-story building already fully engulfed in flames.
"They worked very quickly to extinguish the fire, but unfortunately, the closest hydrant was about a mile and a half away, so they did end up having to shuttle a lot of that water to the scene," Kimberlie Ledsinger with the fire department said.
The building has been declared a total loss and the cause of the fire is currently not known. There was a small grass fire in addition to the building fire, but Ledsinger said that was extinguished quickly and did not affect any neighboring properties.
The Hall County Sheriff's Office announced that Bill Wilson Road was shut down while crews worked the scene. As of 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, that road remained closed.
Ledsinger added that Habersham County's Fire Department also aided in fighting the blaze.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
