A massive pillar of thick, black smoke was visible several miles away from where firefighters battled an intense fire at a warehouse on Savannah’s westside Thursday evening.
What sparked the enormous blaze at the building tucked among several industrial sites in the 1800 block of West Gwinnett Street near the Carver Heights neighborhood was unknown several hours after the fire had been extinguished by Savannah Fire & Emergency Services, said the department’s spokesman Mark Keller.
When firefighters arrived about 5 p.m., the rear of building was already fully engulfed, Keller said.
“When we got here there was a lot of fire, really heavy smoke,” he said. “We took a defensive position and battled from all sides of the building.”
As the firefighters worked to contain the blaze to the rear of the building, fire spread throughout it, eventually fully engulfing the entire structure. About 1.5 hours into the battle, the building’s roof collapsed, Keller said. He added there were no injuries reported.
“What we understand is the people who were here got outside before the fire,” Keller said about 7 p.m. “We haven’t been able to get inside (the warehouse), so we can’t say for sure, but it is our understanding that no one was in there.”
Keller confirmed the structure housed Savannah Architectural Supply, a locally-owned building materials company listed at 1880 W. Gwinnett St.
The items inside the warehouse, including wooden doors and moldings, helped fuel the fire, Keller said. Because of its intensity, dispatchers sent a second alarm out for additional firefighting teams to respond to the blaze, Keller said. He noted the heat index was more than 100 degrees, forcing responding personnel to take turns firefighting and recuperating at a rehab station set up at a neighboring business.
More than two hours after the initial group of firefighters responded to the blaze, small amounts of smoke continue to pour from the charred structure. Keller said investigators examined a small portion of the structure Thursday night to ensure the fire was extinguished. He said the investigation would continue today to determine what caused the fire.