Morning Fire, Smoke Cause $5,000 Damage at Walmart on Redlands Blvd

Fire and smoke damaged a maintenance area at the rear of the Walmart store at West Redlands Boulevard and New Jersey Street early Tuesday in Redlands, according to city and fire officials.

The fire was reported shortly before 4 a.m. Oct. 23 in the 2000 block of West Redlands, a city spokesman said.

"Employees who discovered the fire used fire extinguishers to help keep it from spreading before evacuating the building," Redlands spokesman Carl Baker said.

Redlands and Loma Linda firefighters responded and the fire was contained to the maintenance area, Baker said. Smoke spread through rear storage areas, damaging some merchandise.

Initial damage to the business and merchandise was estimated at $5,000.

"Damage estimates may rise as store employees identify additional merchandise damaged by smoke," Baker said.

The cause of the fire was believed to be electrical, Baker said. No injuries were reported.

The Walmart's street address is 2050 West Redlands Blvd., Redlands.

The existing Walmart store was a point of contention at last week's Redlands city council meeting, when the council voted 4-1 to move forward on the Redlands Crossing project that includes a Walmart Supercenter.

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