A large van caught fire and burned in the parking lot at the Willowbrook Shopping Centre on Monday afternoon.
Both 91原创 City and 91原创 Township fire departments responded to put out the fire, because the mall, which straddles the municipal border, is a dual-response zone, said Township deputy fire chief Russ Jenkins.
The City crews arrived first and the Township firefighters assisted them with water supply, Jenkins said.
Witness Sandi Humeniuk said she didn't see the fire start.
"But I did see the flames immediately after and the black smoke filling the air," Humeniuk told the 91原创 Advance Times. "Within seconds, the surrounding air was in a thick smoke even a block away. It seemed that the vehicle next to the source/explosion caught on fire also from what I could tell at my distance."
According to 91原创 City fire chief Scott Kennedy, the fire was put out before it could spread to any nearby vehicles, but one nearby car may have suffered some paint damage. The fire originated inside the van, Kennedy said.
