Firefighters Respond To 4-Alarm Blaze, Partial Collapse In West Baltimore
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Seven buildings were damaged by a four-alarm fire in West Baltimore on Monday afternoon, the Baltimore Fire Department said.
Firefighters battled flames that chewed away at multiple buildings in the 1500 block of West Baltimore Street, Baltimore Firefighters IAFF Local 734 said on Twitter.
Video from the scene shows the front facade of a burning building collapse onto the pavement below.
No injuries have been reported.
Three of the buildings partially collapsed, according to authorities. A fourth building completely collapsed, fire officials said.
At least three of the buildings were vacant at the time of the fire, according to authorities.
For people who lived and worked in some of these buildings, the fire was devastating.
Building just collapsed. pic.twitter.com/tRC0JLPKKf
— MolotovFlicker Ignoring Your Questions Since 1902® (@MolotovFlicker) May 2, 2022
The owner of the Golden Unicorn told WJZ that he was heart-broken that his heard of 20-plus years is now destroyed.
"These buildings are over 80 years old. The wood is old. Once the fire starts in one building, it's going to go straight through everything," a store owner with a business on the other side of the street told WJZ.
The fire partially melted some of the cars on the other side of the street.
It started in a vacant storefront, fire officials said.
There are vacant buildings across the street too, which is why neighborhood business owners and residents are concerned.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Baltimore Fire confirms a total of seven buildings are involved on W. Baltimore St in the Franklin Square neighborhood. The fire started in a vacant storefront. The cause is still under investigation @wjz pic.twitter.com/UOzIwYymHS
— Cristina Mendez (@CrisMendezTV) May 2, 2022
The fire that destroyed multiple buildings on Monday afternoon occurred just five blocks away from where three firefighters were killed when part of a vacant house collapsed on them in January.
Firefighters Lt. Paul Butrim, Lt Kelsey Sadler, and Kenny Lacayo rushed into the building because they received a report that a person was trapped inside.
A fourth firefighter, John McMaster, was critically injured but survived his injuries.
Fire investigators ruled their deaths as homicides.
A demolition crew worked on cutting a gas line on Monday evening.
Mayor Brandon Scott has allocated $100 million to eradicate some of the problems created by vacant houses in the city.
People who live near the fire site say they are desperately waiting for change and they want it now.
WJZ will continue to update this story.