STILTSVILLE, Fla. (WSVN) — Firefighters extinguished a house fire in Stiltsville.
The fire broke out just before 7:15 a.m., Monday.
“When they arrived, they found the house fully engulfed in flames,” said Miami Fire Rescue Lt. Pete Sanchez.
Cellphone video footage from miles away showed smoke billowing in the sky as firefighters worked to extinguish the blaze.
City of Miami Fire Rescue crews were able to put the fire out in about 10 minutes.
Fire officials said there was no sign of anyone in or around the house at the time of the fire.
“We received reports that the house was vacant,” Sanchez said. “We immediately did a 360 of the area. There was no boats docked, and we did not see any victims in the water.”
7SkyForce HD hovered over the smoldering ash after the flames were put out.
Before the fire, only seven houseboats remained intact due to hurricanes and other bad weather after 90 years.
The homes in Stiltsville, which was built in the 1930s as a chain of weekend bungalows for the locals, are owned by a trust and are used for rentals.
Folks with the trust cleaned up the scene Monday afternoon, are left puzzled by what happened and saddened to see a piece of South Florida history go up in smoke.
There were people staying at the house, which had been standing since the 1960s, over the weekend.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Because of the land lease with the state parks, the trust is unsure if they will be allowed by the state to rebuild the house.
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