LOCAL : Fire Guts Santa Ana Tire Store

A persistent two-alarm blaze raced through a downtown Santa Ana tire store early this morning, injuring five firefighters and causing traffic delays for commuters trying to get to offices and businesses near the Civic Center Plaza.

The fire, reported at 4:07 a.m., gutted the B. F. Goodrich store at Bristol and 1st streets before 35 firefighters could put it out almost four hours later, Santa Ana Fire Department Inspector Karl Ellman said.

The cause was under investigation by fire inspectors, who spent the morning sifting through debris and hundreds of melted tires, Ellman said. No estimate of damage was available.

The melting rubber sent a cloud of thick, acrid black smoke, which could be seen for miles, into the morning sky.

Two firefighters suffered smoke inhalation, and three others were sent to a local hospital when the front facade of the store fell onto them. One of the three suffered burns, a neck injury and a broken ankle. The second complained of pains in his leg, and the third pulled a back muscle, Ellman said.