HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. – A massive cloud of smoke over Progress Village drew a heavy emergency response Thursday afternoon after a fire broke out inside a local warehouse.
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue teams were dispatched to 6609 S 78th Street at 4:37 PM following a flurry of 911 calls from concerned neighbors and passersby reporting heavy smoke pouring from the large commercial building.
The first crews to arrive found flames venting from the front of the structure. Recognizing the potential for a total loss given the building’s footprint, commanders immediately called for a second alarm, pulling in extra engines and manpower to tackle the blaze.
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Once inside, firefighters battled through the smoke to find the fire. They discovered that two RVs parked inside the warehouse were fully engulfed.
Teams moved quickly with hose lines to douse the vehicles and brought the situation under control in about 30 minutes, preventing the flames from consuming the entire facility.
Authorities confirmed that no firefighters or civilians were injured during the operation. While the fire is out, the work isn’t finished; investigators with the Hillsborough County Fire Rescue Fire Investigations Unit are still on-site, sifting through the charred remains of the RVs to figure out exactly what sparked the incident.
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