MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Two Memphis firefighters were killed in a fire in a discount store overnight. Fire Department officials say Trent Kirk and Charles Zachary died from injuries suffered Sunday night at the Family Dollar store on North Watkins Street.
A third firefighter, Timothy Scott, was treated and released from a hospital. Bill Adelman of the Memphis Fire Department said firefighters responded to the three-alarm blaze at about 7:45 p.m. Sunday.
Soon after the fire began, several store employees rushed to the scene to check on crew members. The store had closed at 6 p.m, and some feared managers who stayed late or a cleanup crew might have been caught in the blaze.
"Thankfully, everyone is safe," said cashier Julie Davis, 42. "I left at 7. (The manager) left 20 minutes after me. Everything in there you can replace, but you can't replace people."
Davis said the back of the store contained items conducive to starting a fire.
"We have clothes and aerosol cans ... and automotive fluid," said Davis. "I came to the back of the building and you could see it (the fire). It was like the Fourth of July. The police and firefighters couldn't get near it. They had to control it by the ladders."
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
The store's roof collapsed during the fire and billowing smoke could be seen several blocks.
Family Dollar has more than 4,800 stores in 43 states including Colorado. The Charlotte, N.C.-based chain features basic family and home goods marketed to low- and middle-income consumers.
The two firefighters were the first to die in the line of duty in Memphis in over three years.
Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press.
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Monday, September 6, 2010