Tire Inferno Forces Evacuations in San Diego
An inferno in a downtown tire store forced about 160 people to evacuate nearby buildings and spend the night in a temporary shelter Sunday night.
Images: Inferno Destroys Downtown Tire Shop
The fire was reported at about 10:45 p.m. at Tire Express on the corner of Broadway and 11th Avenue, NBC 7/39 reported. When firefighters arrived, flames and thick plumes of black smoke were shooting out of the windows at the business.
More than 90 firefighters fought the blaze with 12 engines and 6 trucks. Residents of Hometel, a residence hotel at 943 10th Ave., were evacuated in buses to a Red Cross shelter set up in the gym at San Diego High School. Many of the evacuees are elderly or disabled, NBC 7/39 reported.
A number of people were treated for smoke inhalation, but nobody was seriously injured by the fire, officials said.
Fire crews poured up to 4000 gallons of water a minute on the blaze for several hours and prevented it from spreading to other buildings. They brought the flames under control at about 2 a.m., but crews were still spraying down hot spots at 6:30 a.m. Fire department spokesman Maurice Luque said the fire was one of the largest in the downtown area in years.
Police closed southbound 10th Avenue at B Street, Broadway between 9th Avenue and Park Boulevard, and 11th Avenue from A to F streets. The streets were expected to remain closed until sometime Monday afternoon, officials said.
The cause of the fire was under investigation.
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