New Orleans Fire Department: Three Alarm Fire At Public Storage Facility On S. Carrollton Avenue

New Orleans LA

26 April, 2022

1:00 PM

Description

Press release from the New Orleans Fire Department: April 23, 2022 On Saturday, April 23, 2022 at 8:11 p.m., the New Orleans Fire Department (NOFD) received a 911 reporting a fire in a commercial building in the 3300 block of S. Carrollton Ave. Arriving on the scene at 8:16 p.m., firefighters found an open storage unit with a vehicle burning inside at the Public Storage self-storage facility at 5440 S. Carrollton Ave. During efforts to extinguish the vehicle, firefighters quickly noticed that the fire had already extended to storage units on both sides and above the unit of origin. This prompted the request for a second alarm at 8:32 p.m. Firefighters had to make forced entries into these units using axes and heavy-duty circular saws, as the fire extended through spaces between the common walls and ceilings of the storage units. Vehicles, furniture and other household and commercial items made for both heavy and unpredictable fire loads in these densely packed units. A third alarm was requested at 9:50 p.m. as firefighters attempted to suppress this labor-intensive fire. Southbound traffic was detoured at the 3300 block of S. Carrollton Ave. to accommodate fire hoses supporting NOFD trucks and fire engines. Although this incident has been placed under control as of 10:46 p.m., we anticipate NOFD Fire Operations personnel being on the scene for several hours overhauling the contents of each unit involved and using thermal imaging cameras to make sure all smoldering fires have been extinguished. Nineteen NOFD units supported by fifty-five Fire Operations personnel were used in the mitigation of this incident. There were no injuries reported and the cause of this fire is currently under investigation. Call Received: 8:11 p.m. Dispatched: 8:12 p.m. Arrival: 8:16 p.m. Second Alarm: 8:32 p.m. Third Alarm: 9:50 p.m. Under Control: 10:46 p.m. NOFD Units: 19 Fire Ops Personnel: 55 Injuries: None reported Cause: Under Investigation This press release was produced by the New Orleans Fire Department. The views expressed here are the author's own.