NORTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - A fire has left at least one business and one car a charred mess in Northwest Miami-Dade.
It was a two-alarm fire was seen burning near Northwest 94th Street and 17th Avenue, Monday, at around 5 p.m.
Someone at a nearby business heard a boom and other sounds during the fire.
“All we heard was booming, banging and popping sounds,” said Josh Davis. “By the time we come outside, the whole thing was up in flames … smoke everywhere.”
Over 15 Miami-Dade Fire Rescue trucks arrived on the scene and had much of the fire out by 5:30 p.m.
A structure as well as at least one vehicle in the back of the building were also seen fully engulfed by flames.
“We did have multiple explosions,” said MDFR Division Chief Mark Chavers. “We did have two vehicles in the back plus multiple propane tanks, and there’s an alleyway behind the building that was going off while crews are fighting the fire … they were constantly exploding.”
Three firefighters were seen on the roof as smoke was seen rising underfoot.
Rescue crews took two people with smoke inhalation to the hospital. Firefighters said one of them tried putting out that fire.
It wasn’t until Monday evening that you truly saw how bad this was.
“I never thought in my life that I was going to be– end up like this: no house, nowhere, practically no house,” said Angelica Manzanarez.
The fire didn’t start at Manzanarez’s home but, she said, it ruined part of it and her ice cream truck business that she had been operating since 2007.
It was her only source of income.
“I don’t know how I’m going to pay my rent,” she said. “I don’t know how am I going to pay my insurance, and I can’t afford to lose it.”
Firefighters rescued her 2-year-old dog Minnie from her house. Angelica wasn’t home at the time.
“I’m happy that I have her, but now we have no home,” she said.
Investigators will get to the bottom of how and why this fire started at a business and spread to other buildings nearby.
They are preliminarily calling this an arson investigation.
“Yeah, I would say it’s suspicious at this point,” said Chavers.
Anyone that would like to help Manzanarez can visit a GoFundMe page that a relative helped set up.
She said she had no insurance for her business.
“One dollar, two dollars, whatever it is to help me back on my feet again. Because I have no other way. That’s the only way,” she said.
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