Firefighter falls through floor of burning three-story building

A firefighter fell through the floor of a burning three-story building in downtown Atlanta, according to Atlanta Fire Rescue.

Crews responded to a fire in a building in the 200 block of Auburn Avenue about 10 a.m. Monday, Atlanta fire spokesman Sgt. Cortez Stafford.

The blaze produced smoke over the Downtown Connector before it was extinguished, the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center reported.

Officials were still putting out hot spots in the early afternoon, prompting authorities to close Auburn Avenue between Fort Street and Piedmont Avenue, according to the Atlanta Police Department.

According to Stafford, units were heading toward the exit of the building when the firefighter fell from the second floor to the first floor.

He attributed the fall to “a hole on the floor.” The injured firefighter was alert and breathing when he was taken to a hospital, Stafford said. He is expected to be OK.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

“It’s unknown right now how the fire started, but we do feel like it started on the first floor,” Stafford said.

The first floor was occupied by a type of lounge or club, Stafford said. The name of the business was not known. The second and third floors were vacant.


See video of the fire at on-ajc.com/2Mh9JiM.