Fire Damages Miami Storage Facility

Nov. 16, 2009
MIAMI --   Fire investigators are trying to determine what sparked a two-alarm fire at a storage facility in Miami-Dade County Monday morning. The blaze, which started around 2 a.m. at the Public Storage facility located at 185th Street and Northeast Fifth Avenue, could be seen for miles.   Fire crews used power saws to cut through the steel roll-up doors of each storage bay to locate the source of the fire.

MIAMI --

Fire investigators are trying to determine what sparked a two-alarm fire at a storage facility in Miami-Dade County Monday morning.

The blaze, which started around 2 a.m. at the Public Storage facility located at 185th Street and Northeast Fifth Avenue, could be seen for miles.

Fire crews used power saws to cut through the steel roll-up doors of each storage bay to locate the source of the fire. Over half of the 80 storage units were engulfed in flames.

Their efforts, however, were hindered by the thin walls of corrugated metal that separated each unit, allowing the intense flames and heavy smoke to spread quickly.

It took 70 Miami-Dade firefighters an hour and a half to get the fire under control. By the time fire crews were able to contain the fire, 40 units had been heavily damaged.

The facility's manager told Local 10's Kellie Butler that it is the responsibility of the person renting the unit to buy insurance for its contents.

No one was inside the facility at the time of the blaze and no injuries were reported.

The cause of the fire is unknown. Firefighters will remain at the scene throughout the morning.

Copyright 2009 by Post-Newsweek Stations. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed

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