'Whole store was engulfed!' Furniture Depot a total loss after 3-alarm blaze
MILWAUKEE -- Fire tore through Furniture Depot near 25th and Lincoln on Milwaukee's south side Saturday night, April 13. Residents scurried as the building went up in flames, fearing it was going to spread. It required a three-alarm response.
"The whole store was engulfed," said Robert Bailey.
Bailey said the blaze two doors down from him was intense.
Fire destroys Furniture Depot near 25th and Lincoln (Courtesy: Incident Response)
"The window blew right out. The flames were shooting way above the roof," said Bailey.
The flames -- along with thick smoke -- sent residents running for cover.
Fire destroys Furniture Depot near 25th and Lincoln (Courtesy: Incident Response)
"You felt the heat. Like, everything was hitting you," said Jervitta Bradford. "I got everyone out the house and took them down to the corner."
Meanwhile, dozens of firefighters fought the blaze.
"They immediately went into defensive operations, and also protecting exposure next door," said Deputy Chief Todd VanRoo.
Fire destroys Furniture Depot near 25th and Lincoln
VanRoo said the day care behind the business on Forest Home was affected.
"There is some water damage to the day care," he said.
Fire destroys Furniture Depot near 25th and Lincoln
Fire destroys Furniture Depot near 25th and Lincoln
Fire destroys Furniture Depot near 25th and Lincoln
Charred in a matter of moments, Furniture Depot was a total loss. Fire officials said the intensity was due, in part, to the contents of the building.
"All of those combustibles, the polyesters, those plastics," said VanRoo. "Those things that furniture are made of today are going to ignite and burn very fast, very hot."
Fire destroys Furniture Depot near 25th and Lincoln (Courtesy: Incident Response)
It took crews nearly three hours to get it extinguished -- only for them to be called back out just around midnight.
"There was a spot fire that was up in the roof area," said VanRoo.
After tending to that, investigators were able to sift through the building -- attempting to figure out how, where and why this all happened.
"The whole place burned up," said Bailey. "It's pretty sad."
Fire officials said thankfully, there were no injuries.