An afternoon fire destroyed a central city warehouse Thursday.

Just after 1:15 p.m. crews responded to a report of a fire at Smead and Elmwood avenues. When fire crews arrived, they found heavy smoke coming from the building at 2147 Smead Ave.

With most of the building’s doors and windows bricked up, crews had a difficult time gaining entry, so they initially took a defensive posture in an effort to keep the fire from spreading to other structures.

Once they started to attack the fire, firefighters were forced to pull back as suspected propane tanks inside the warehouse started to ignite. Heavy fire and smoke was visible on the south side of the building, and most of the building’s roof collapsed. 

More than 90 minutes after the first crews arrived, firefighters were still dealing with small fires in the building.

The 5,400-square-foot warehouse was built in 1900 and had an assessed value of $74,700, according to the Lucas County Auditor’s office.

First Published February 6, 2025, 8:52 p.m.