2018 Phoenix Safeway fire
The 2018 Phoenix Safeway fire was a 3-alarm blaze that took place on July 11, 2018, at a Park Northern Shopping Center Safeway Supermarkets location in Phoenix, Arizona,[1][2] at the corner of 35th and Northern avenues,[3] near the city of Glendale.
The building was destroyed, but no one was injured in the fire.
Prelude
In 2001, a fire at a nearby Southwest Supermarkets resulted in the death of a firefighter. In response, the Phoenix Fire Department implemented additional rules, including not going over 150 feet deep inside a burning building.[4] These were credited with the lack of fatalities.
Fire
The fire began in the back room of the supermarket around 6 pm. Firemen responded by clearing the store of people and aggressively fighting the fire. The fire broke a gas line and a main electrical box,[5] and covered nearby houses in ash.[6]
It was later reported that the fire caused the supermarket's roof to collapse.[7]
Aftermath
The Phoenix Fire Department's investigation showed that a monsoon storm played a part in the fire.[8] Captain Rob McDade, spokesman for the Phoenix Fire Department, said that a microburst played a role by dumping a large amount of rain in the area and that the water from the rain may have collected on the store's roof.[8]
Nancy Keane, Safeway's spokeswoman, said that employees were moved to other Safeway stores in Phoenix and they had been compensated.[9]
Despite locals' calls for rebuilding the supermarket, including placing signs near the burned store expressing how they missed it,[10] Safeway ultimately decided not to rebuild the store. Officials said that this was a hard decision to make, since the store had been a part of the community for more than 30 years.[11]
The strip mall in which the building had been located was purchased by SimonCre, a developer from Scottsdale, Arizona, with plans to turn the burned structure into a Vasa Fitness gym location.[12] Joshua Simon, founder and CEO of SimonCre, announced that his company hoped the purchase would turn the property around.[13]
See also
- Pan Am Flight 759 - another disaster caused by microburst
- Delta Flight 191 - another disaster caused by microburst
External links
- ↑ "Fire destroys Phoenix supermarket after roof collapses". July 12, 2018.
- ↑ "Safeway fire: Drone footage shows remains". Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
- ↑ "Fire Destroys Safeway Grocery Store at 35th Ave and Northern Ave in North Phoenix, Arizona". July 12, 2018.
- ↑ "Lessons learned from fatal 2001 fire may have saved lives at the Safeway blaze". 12news.com. July 12, 2018.
- ↑ "North Phoenix supermarket destroyed by massive fire". FOX 7 Austin. July 12, 2018.
- ↑ Dominguez, Alexis (July 11, 2023). "Five years later, Phoenix neighborhood still recovering after monsoon sparked Safeway fire". azfamily.com.
- ↑ Circa, JESSIE KARANGU (July 11, 2018). "Massive fire causes roof collapse at a grocery store in Phoenix". WCIV.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Fire officials confirm storm played part in Phoenix Safeway fire". 12news.com. July 11, 2018.
- ↑ Forburger, Angie. "Phoenix Safeway store destroyed by fire will not be rebuilt, company says". The Arizona Republic.
- ↑ "Safeway will not rebuild Phoenix location destroyed by fire last month". August 2, 2018.
- ↑ "West Phoenix supermarket won't be rebuilt after July 11 fire". The Washington Times.
- ↑ https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2019/07/09/burned-down-safeway-purchased-redevelopment.html
- ↑ "One year later: Phoenix Safeway that caught fire to be redeveloped into potential fitness center". ABC15 Arizona in Phoenix (KNXV). July 11, 2019.
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