St. Louis fire update: 200 firefighters battle blaze in multiple warehouses — here's what we know

A major fire broke out in at least five our warehouses located in St. Louis on Friday, with firefighters battling to douse it.

The incident took place near 2nd street and Gratoit in the historic Crunden Martin Warehouse facility.

Several videos circulating on the social media platforms showed thick smoke billowing from the warehouses.

The fire was primarily from natural materials, mostly wood, and the level was upgraded to a six-alarm (extremely large and dangerous).

Around 200 firefighters are in action to douse the blaze, of which, 180 additional firefighters were brought in to maintain citywide coverage.

St. Louis Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson said that the flames were reaching between 200 to 300-feet tall.

“Flames quickly spread, eventually engulfing about five vacant warehouse buildings and causing structures to collapse,” reported FoX2now quoting Jenkerson.

So far, there are no reports of casualties or injuries. The reason behind the blaze is not yet known.

"It's too early in the fire to even consider a cause. We had quite a few electrical outages in the area, so we're trying to get that on as soon as possible when Ameren makes that decision," Jenkerson told KSDK.

Wind has also played a role in this fire, with embers blowing eastwards, catching nearby electric lines and railroad tracks on fire. The fire chief said some people may be without electricity because of this, but as the fire becomes more contained, the Fire Department will contact Ameren to reconnect lines that were damaged.

In a post on X, KSDK Chief Meteorologist Scott Connell said, “That warehouse fire is downtown #STL is really prominent on the radar this morning. It’s a cold morning and yes, we still have some snow in the forecast for early Saturday (some accumulation is expected).”

The fire department said that some people may be without electricity as wind has also played a role in this fire.