Fire at Cobb storage building blocked busy road for nearly 4 hours

The blaze sent large plumes of black smoke over South Cobb Drive near Pat Mell and Austell roads.

The blaze sent large plumes of black smoke over South Cobb Drive near Pat Mell and Austell roads.

All lanes of South Cobb Drive were shut down for nearly four hours Monday so authorities could work to put out a fire at a storage building, officials said.

The blaze sent large plumes of black smoke over the road near Pat Mell and Austell roads, according to the Cobb County Fire Department. About 11:30 a.m., South Cobb Drive was shut down between those intersections while fire crews worked to put out the blaze.

The nearest hydrant was on the opposite side of the street, which is why the half-mile stretch of road was blocked, fire spokesman Stephen Bennett said.

Two buildings were destroyed. At 5 p.m., crews were still monitoring hot spots.

He added that no one was seriously injured, but one person was checked by paramedics at the scene before being released.

The cause of the fire has not been determined. Bennett said investigators can’t begin to look at the damage until “enough time has passed to allow toxic gases and smoke to dissipate.”

The storage building was on South Cobb Drive between Pat Mell and Austell roads in Cobb County

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