2018 Phoenix Safeway fire
The 2018 Phoenix Safeway fire was a 3-alarm blaze that took place on July 11, 2018, at a Park Northern Shopping Center Safeway Supermarkets location in Phoenix, Arizona, at the corner of 35th and Northern avenues, near the city of Glendale.
The building was destroyed, but no one was injured in the fire.
Prelude
In 2001, a fire at a nearby Southwest Supermarkets resulted in the death of a firefighter. In response, the Phoenix Fire Department implemented additional rules, including not going over 150 feet deep inside a burning building. These were credited with the lack of fatalities.
Fire
The fire began in back room of the supermarket around 6pm. Firemen responded by clearing the store of people and aggressively fighting the fire. The fire broke a gas line and a main electrical box, and covered nearby houses in ash.
It was later reported that the fire caused the supermarket's roof to collapse.
Aftermath
The Phoenix Fire Department's investigation showed that a monsoon storm played a part in the fire. Captain Rob McDade, spokesman for the Phoenix Fire Department, said that a microburst played a role by dumping a large amount of rain in the area and that the water from the rain may have collected on the store's roof.
Despite locals' calls for rebuilding the supermarket, including placing signs near the burned store expressing how they missed it, Safeway ultimately decided not to rebuild the store. Officials said that this was a hard decision to make, since the store had been a part of the community for more than 30 years.
The strip mall in which the building had been located was purchased by SimonCre, a developer from Scottsdale, Arizona, with plans to turn the burned structure into a Vasa Fitness gym location. Joshua Simon, founder and CEO of SimonCre, announced that his company hoped the purchase would turn the property around.
The building was destroyed, but no one was injured in the fire.
Prelude
In 2001, a fire at a nearby Southwest Supermarkets resulted in the death of a firefighter. In response, the Phoenix Fire Department implemented additional rules, including not going over 150 feet deep inside a burning building. These were credited with the lack of fatalities.
Fire
The fire began in back room of the supermarket around 6pm. Firemen responded by clearing the store of people and aggressively fighting the fire. The fire broke a gas line and a main electrical box, and covered nearby houses in ash.
It was later reported that the fire caused the supermarket's roof to collapse.
Aftermath
The Phoenix Fire Department's investigation showed that a monsoon storm played a part in the fire. Captain Rob McDade, spokesman for the Phoenix Fire Department, said that a microburst played a role by dumping a large amount of rain in the area and that the water from the rain may have collected on the store's roof.
Despite locals' calls for rebuilding the supermarket, including placing signs near the burned store expressing how they missed it, Safeway ultimately decided not to rebuild the store. Officials said that this was a hard decision to make, since the store had been a part of the community for more than 30 years.
The strip mall in which the building had been located was purchased by SimonCre, a developer from Scottsdale, Arizona, with plans to turn the burned structure into a Vasa Fitness gym location. Joshua Simon, founder and CEO of SimonCre, announced that his company hoped the purchase would turn the property around.
Comments