A smoky truck fire inside the loading dock delayed the Tuesday morning opening of the Providence Place Mall as the mall’s sprinkler system and fire crews worked to knock down the blaze, then ventilated smoke from the garage and the mall itself.
“Engine companies came in to the north loading dock of the parking garage, stretched hand lines off their truck and controlled the fire, along with the sprinkler system,” said Acting Deputy Assistant Providence Fire Chief Kevin Jutras. “There was a significant amount of smoke that had to be evacuated.”
There were no injuries, Jutras said, and he ordered the opening of the mall delayed until 10 A.M. to give the ventilation system a chance to rid the smoke from the building.
“A parking garage like this below the mall and throughout the rest of the mall has a carbon monoxide smoke exhaust system. That system, along with the positive pressure fans that we deployed were able to remove the smoke from the parking garage and the upper levels of the parking garage above us.”