Firefighters battle two-alarm building fire in Downtown El Paso

El Paso firefighters battled a two-alarm blaze Monday in a Downtown building built in the 1880s.

The fire was reported about 8:20 a.m. in a building housing a shoe store in the 300 block of South El Paso Street, according to a tweet from the Fire Department. There were no reported injuries.

Fifty firefighters and 18 vehicles still were battling the fire at about noon after neighboring stores were evacuated, officials said. By about 2 p.m., the bulk of the fire had been extinguished and fire suppression work continued into the evening.

An aerial ladder truck was used to fight the fire as black smoke floated in the area, which is mostly retail shops near the border.

El Paso Street was closed from Overland Avenue to Paisano Drive as firefighters worked to control the blaze. Paisano was closed from El Paso Street to Oregon Avenue, the El Paso Office of Emergency Management said.

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The building on fire at 324 S. El Paso St. was completed in 1885 and was originally a furniture store at ground level with apartments above, Max Grossman, an architectural historian and a board member of Preservation Texas, stated in an email. The two-story, territorial-style brick building has wooden floors and roof, Grossman said.

Grossman said he was concerned that the fire could spread to the "Holland's Building" next door to the south at 402 S. El Paso St. The building dates back to 1883 and is one of the oldest buildings in Downtown. It was the original El Paso County headquarters after the county seat relocated to El Paso from San Elizario, Grossman stated.

Holland's Department Store closed in 2018 after more than 58 years in business.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Firefighters battle two-alarm fire in Downtown El Paso