PF&R Responds To Early Morning 2nd Alarm Commercial Fire (Photo) - 01/24/26

This morning at about 5:30am Portland Fire was called to a commercial fire in the vicinity of NE 127^th and Marx St.  The initial caller reported seeing smoke from a building west of them but were unable to give an exact address.  While enroute to the call the first arriving company noted a “header” or a large column of smoke coming from the roof and upon arrival it was noted heavy smoke coming from several bay doors of the building as well as the roof. 

All first arriving crews were quickly put to work establishing a water supply, forcible entry and search as well as fire attack.  Due to the large size of the commercial warehouse building, approximately 100’ x 300’ along with the amount of fire, a 2^nd alarm was called just a couple minutes after arrival of the first engine and truck.

It was quickly determined that this concrete tilt-up style warehouse contained several businesses, but they all were closed and no employees were on-site, so a defensive fire attack was initiated.  Elevated master streams were set up to attack the fire from above as sections of the roof had burned through.  Additionally, large hose lines were deployed to attack the fire through openings along the sides of the building, including several bay doors that had been forced open by firefighters.

Crews faced several difficulties during this incident including freezing temperatures which caused the surrounding parking lot and street to turn icy thus making moving around on the fire ground extra slow and difficult.  The first arriving crew was told by a by-stander that this building contained compressed gas cylinders which can become dangerous when exposed to fire conditions, and water pressure always becomes an issue when trying to implement several master streams during a defensive fire attack.  Crews were able to help mitigate this issue by cutting a hole in a fence and use a fire hydrant that was fed by a different water main.

The fire was under control after about 1 hour, but a small number of crews will remain on scene throughout the day, and possibly longer, to put out hot spots.  Investigators are currently working to determine the cause.

Portland Fire would like to thank our partners at Gresham Fire who responded on the second alarm, Portland Water Bureau, as well as Portland General Electric and Northwest Natural who responded to the scene to assist with the utilities.