Off-Strip Las Vegas Fire Leads to Heavy Smoke, Flames

A vacant warehouse west of the Las Vegas Strip caught on fire early Wednesday, with firefighters facing heavy flames and smoke. The property is located near the .

The Bertsos Drive blaze was first reported at 8:25 am Wednesday. The fire was mostly extinguished by 11 am that same morning. But as of that time, firefighters remained on the scene in an effort to prevent the fire from spreading to nearby buildings.

There were no injuries reported, based on initial information from Clark County Deputy Fire Chief Warren Whitney.

The first arriving unit found a warehouse fire with heavy smoke and flames,” Whitney said in a statement. “A defensive attack was initiated due to the heavy flame involvement and structural instability.”

The warehouse has been empty for about 10 years, Whitney said. The building has seen modifications without proper permits, and the building had code enforcement violations, Whitney added.

The site was also the location of prior fires started by homeless individuals, the deputy chief said.

The cause of the fire was not known as of early Wednesday, KLAS, a local TV station, reported.

Also, Las Vegas fire investigators found “nothing suspicious” when searching for the cause of a recent fire at a residential complex that broke out this weekend.

The historic blaze early Sunday caused widespread damage to residential buildings off of Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas. It was the largest number of occupied dwelling units on fire in 25 years, Las Vegas firefighters reported.

Ten or more buildings were heavily damaged or destroyed in the four-alarm fire that took five hours to bring under control, firefighters said.

Much of downtown lost power in connection with the fire, according to initial reports. Traffic in the area was also impacted. The enflamed buildings were made up of a condominium complex.

American Red Cross of Southern Nevada Disaster Program Manager Christi Wiegmann told KVVU, another local TV station, that 24 residences experienced damage from burning.

Downtown casinos and tourist attractions are a mile or two away from the site of the fire. El Cortez Casino is about a mile from the blaze. The Fremont Street Experience is located about 1.5 miles away.

Only one person suffered minor smoke inhalation. That individual was treated at the scene, and later released. No other injuries were reported.

Guests at a nearby motel and residents at a nearby studio apartment complex also were evacuated.

Some residents went to Hollingsworth Steam Academy, a nearby school, for temporary shelter. Hundreds of people were forced to leave their residences or rooms, KTNV, a local TV station, initially reported.