For more than a week, firefighters across North Texas have battled wildfires to the point of exhaustion. On Tuesday night, some of those same crews faced an inferno that ripped through an Oak Cliff building in just minutes.
As devastating as the dry conditions have been, the wind has been fueling and spreading fires. Dallas firefighters were at the scene of a burning building near Kramer and Eight Street in Dallas in numbers.
At the time, smoke was only trickling out and firefighters were making entry.
"And then all of a sudden -- boom -- the whole thing just went 'boom' and fire started coming out of the ceiling and everything," said Gabriel Zavala, a witness.
Gusty winds breathed new life into the flames, which were also being fueled by the building's contents.
"It's actually a business that houses refurbished carpet," said Annette Ponce, a fire department spokeswoman.
The carpet, padding and other materials are highly flammable. Firefighters followed the smoke skyward, fighting the flames from ladder trucks to avoid the intense heat.
Officials said more than 100 firefighters battled the blaze.
The fire department had to shut off power to the area because the ladder trucks were so close to power lines.
No injuries were reported. A man told investigators he was at the building earlier, went to lunch and returned to find the fire. Investigators do not know the fire's cause yet.
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