Warehouse Fire in Miami-Dade Now Under Control: Officials

Smoke billowed from the building situated in the 5300 block of 35th Court

A Miami-Dade warehouse fire was brought under control Friday nearly four hours after it started, officials said. 

The blaze was reported before 8 a.m, burning the United Pillow Company's factory situated in the 5300 block of 35th Court. Flames had burned the roof as smoke billowed from the structure, aerial images showed.

"There's a possibility of collapsing walls because it's been burning for so long and so hot, that's why most people are fighting it from the outside," Al Cruz, of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, said earlier in the day.

More Local Stories Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}

The fire burned through the fabric, foam, wood and cardboard inside. Factory owner Miguel Rodriguez watched the blaze helplessly from across the street.

"Thank God nobody got hurt, I mean, I can rebuild this, I did it once, I can do it again, but geez, heck of a shock," he told NBC 6 South Florida.

Rodriguez said his first concern was taking care of his 16 employees, but now, he said, he'll have orders that won't be filled.

"I tried to rush in there to see if I could open the overhead door, but it wasn't so much that I couldn't see, there was smoke in there, but it was hot," he said.

But by noon Friday, the fire department announced it managed to extinguish fire.

NBC 6 Videos

Cruz called the incident "dangerous." Firefighters used several hoses to spray water from one side of the structure. They also used several vehicles, including a ladder truck.

The fire is under investigation.  

Black Friday Sales Lure South Florida Deal-Seekers

Contact Us