Omaha, Nebraska — In the late hours of Friday night, a three-alarm fire erupted at a laundry facility located near 16th and Pierce streets, drawing an urgent response from 60 firefighters. The blaze, reported by the alarm company just before midnight, necessitated additional alarms due to freezing temperatures, according to officials from the Omaha Fire Department.
Assistant Fire Marshal Joe Caniglia highlighted the challenging conditions, stating, “Both the second and third alarm mainly called due to, again, the freezing temperatures. Right now, temperature was fairly good except for right now we’re in the single digit range.”
Firefighters encountered a formidable wall of flames on the northeast side of the building upon arrival. However, their swift and coordinated efforts enabled them to contain and extinguish the fire within a mere 20 minutes.
Remarkably, the building was unoccupied at the time of the incident, and investigators revealed that the flames originated from outside the facility before spreading inward. Despite the intensity of the blaze, crews successfully prevented further escalation by promptly controlling the fire.