Video by Archie Jenkins III
A sprawling building under renovation went up in flames late Thursday night in Rochester.
Firefighters were called to the former Tent City building on Lyell and Dewey avenues around 10:30 p.m. and found heavy smoke from the four-story building and called a second alarm.
“Anytime we have multiple stories, that’s our protocol,” Lt. Jackie Sierra told WHAM.
Firefighters found heavy fire conditions on the second floor and other crews quickly reported fires on multiple floors, with command pulling crews out.
The third and fourth alarms were called as crews went to a defensive attack, setting up aerial ladders around the building.
“We had two exposure homes,” Sierra told the television station. “While they didn’t catch fire, they did suffer exterior damage from the radiant heat.”
As flames engulfed the large building, much of it collapsed.
Just blocks away, the city's remaining companies and mutual aid crews from the suburan communities responded to a house fire on Cameron Street.
