The investigation continues into a fire in Southeast D.C. that sent plumes of smoke into the air that could be visible from around the city and caused Metrobus delays on Saturday afternoon.
The call for a two-alarm fire at the 2700 block of MLK Avenue SE went out at around 3:47 p.m., according to Vito Maggiolo, the public information officer for D.C. Fire and EMS.
A wooden barn abandoned on the property of the old St. Elizabeths Hospital was well engulfed in flames when the fire department arrived, Maggiolo said.
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The bulk of the fire was suppressed within 35 minutes, according to the fire department.
There is no evidence of any injuries at this time, authorities confirmed Sunday.
"A fire like this is risky to the firefighters and anybody that's around it because it's a very rapidly growing fire. It's in a wood-framed building, so when we got here, it was in full possession of this building. It's about 75 feet by 150 feet," Donnelly said in a news conference.
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He added that there were multiple collapses during the operation. He expects all of the pieces to fall overnight and for there to be nothing standing of the barn when the operation is over.
It appeared that the structure was not being actively used for anything, and that no other buildings were damaged on the campus, according to the fire department.
About 130 firefighters and 30 units battled the flames, Donnelly said.
The cause of the blaze is not yet known. The fire affected Metrobus service, the transit agency said in a tweet. Riders should plan for delays and detours on the A and W lines (A2,A4,A6,A7,A8,W2,W3).
This is a developing story. Refresh for updates.
