WHEELING — Both professional fire investigators and members of the public were at the site of the old Exposition Hall at the Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack Wednesday following a fire there Tuesday night.

Wheeling Fire Department investigators spent much of New Year’s Day on Wednesday investigating the scene, which attracted a large number of onlookers, according to Carrie Scanlon, regional senior director of marketing for track owner Delaware North.

“We’re still waiting for all the investigating to be complete,” she said. “At this point, we’re just letting the Wheeling Fire Department do their job and do what they do best.

“We’re just asking that the public stay clear of the area while there’s still an investigative situation, and let them keep doing their thing.”

No one was injured during the massive blaze, but the Exposition Hall was a total loss.

The structure was constructed in 1924 and designed by Wheeling architect Frederick F. Faris, according to information provided by the Ohio County Public Library. The West Virginia Exposition and State Fair Association commissioned the building to be part of the state fairgrounds on Wheeling Island.

Locals remember the building when it was used as a rollerskating rink in the 1980s. In recent years, the building was used as a storage facility for the track. No employees worked inside the building.

Scanlon said Wednesday it isn’t believed anything of great financial value was being stored in the Exposition Hall.

“It was just financial documents, and things like that we have to keep,” she said. “It could have been much worse.”

Scanlon again urged the public to stay clear of the area and let fire department investigators do their job.

Wheeling firefighters rang in the new year at the track putting out the fire.

The first 911 call was made around 6:10 p.m. Tuesday, and shortly after flames were visible from the roof and the fire could be seen miles away, said a statement released Wednesday by the Wheeling Fire Department.

When firefighters arrived on scene, the entire roof of the building was engulfed in fire and later collapsed.

Firefighters were able to suppress most of the fire in about three hours, and continued to extinguish hot spots overnight, according to the statement.

Fire investigators will continue looking into a cause, which has not yet been determined

The Cumberland Trail Fire Department assisted Wheeling firefighters by answering other fire or emergency related calls in the city. New Year’s Eve events continued as scheduled at the track, and operations there were not affected by the fire.