NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — A nine-unit storage building in the West End neighborhood of New Orleans caught fire and burned for nearly two hours before being brought under control by the New Orleans and Jefferson Parish fire departments on Wednesday, July 10.
According to the New Orleans Fire Department, the fire, which occurred at 311 W. Robert E. Lee Blvd., was reported at 2:37 p.m. The NOFD was immediately dispatched and began working to put the fire under control.
As NOFD Fire Operations personnel were attempting to get into the storage units, they realized that the fire was spreading and may have even involved all nine units of the building, prompting the request for a second alarm at 2:56 p.m., 14 minutes after the fire ops had arrived.
A report in Jefferson Parish also prompted a full one-alarm contingent from Jefferson Parish’s East Bank Consolidated Fire Department to arrive on the scene.
After an hour of fighting the fire, although fire ops personnel were confident that the fire could be contained to the storage building, the contents of the building, which were primarily boats and cars, made for a very heavy fire load and prompted the request of a third alarm at 3:54 p.m.
The third alarm was meant to bring in extra personnel and relieve the first-up fire companies.
The fire was brought under control at 4:34 p.m. and required the use of 25 NOFD units supported by 68 fire ops personnel. No injuries have been reported.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
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