Shoppers, Workers Flee Storeroom Fire at Big 5
A fire at a sporting goods store Wednesday shot billows of smoke into the sky as shoppers and employees fled for safety.
Nobody was reported injured in the “very stubborn” afternoon blaze at the Big 5 Sporting Goods store on Los Angeles Avenue, according to Joe Luna, a spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department.
The fire started about 4 p.m. in a rear storeroom packed with running shoes and other flammable items, Luna said. Investigators late Wednesday had not determined its cause or the extent of the store’s loss.
Luna said the store’s stock of ammunition, gunpowder and fuel for camping lanterns was in another part of the building and not affected by the blaze.
The blaze was confined to the storeroom area, Luna said. About 35 firefighters battled it, and some were to remain on the scene throughout the night.
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