MILWAUKEE — Flames spat out of the second-story windows and through the roof of a mixed-use building on the 3000 block of N. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive Sunday.
Multiple Milwaukee Fire Department crews worked to put out the fire, spraying water from ladders into the windows and through the roof of the building.
The fire reached a second alarm level, according to the MFD. This means the fire needed additional engines and potentially another chief to help manage the scene.
MFD brought in several ladder trucks with aerial water towers to hit the building from above. High heat and zero visibility as well as a partial collapse of the roof and first floor prevented crews from going inside the building.
A man who told MFD he was the owner of the building told investigators there was a "hoarding situation" in the basement. Firefighters believe the blaze started in the basement and spread internally to engulf all floors.
Watch: Large fire consumes building on N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr.:
MFD says an apartment building shares a wall with the burnt building, but that it was virtually undamaged by the fire. Everyone who lived in those apartments was able to get out without any problems.
Even after the flames subsided, smoke still filled the street and the winter-chilled breath of the firefighters was almost invisible in the haze.
The crews hacked what appeared to be metal covers off the windows to get better access to the fire as released water rushed down the side of the building and onto the street.
Flames are no longer visible in the building. According to MFD, crews will be on the scene for a while to make sure the fire is completely out.
There were no injuries, according to MFD.
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