More than 15 Miami-Dade Fire Rescue units respond to warehouse fire in Opa-Locka

More than 15 Miami-Dade Fire Rescue units responded Monday afternoon to a warehouse fire in Opa-Locka.

Emergency crews were dispatched just before 2 p.m. to the unoccupied facility at 13990 N.W. 20th Court. Upon arrival, firefighters forced entry into the building after finding significant fire conditions inside.

An initial attack involving 16 units brought the fire under control. Due to windy conditions, officials called a second alarm to prevent the flames from spreading to neighboring structures.

"We never want to take any chances given the windy conditions that can make a fire attack challenging with a full alarm," Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Battalion Chief John Meic said. "This involved a 2nd alarm, and we did what we could to keep it from spreading."

Meic reported no injuries to firefighters or civilians. He noted the warehouse was used for general storage and housed hazardous materials, including acetylene and propane tanks. A fire investigator is on scene working to determine the cause of the blaze.

Or Turgeman, who works at an adjacent business, quickly reported the fire to emergency services.

"I was working here in the warehouse, and I smelled smoke, and it smelled like burning rubber," Turgeman said. "There was a lot of smoke, and I saw something, and I called 911."

Turgeman praised emergency personnel for their rapid arrival and professional response.

"They came here very quickly. It was an amazing response, and they were very quick and very professional," Turgeman said. "It could have been very dangerous because there was a lot of junk over there and there were cardboard boxes and a lot of stuff. Thank God they responded very quickly."