Arizona police are searching for three suspects after a fireworks display at a Phoenix Walmart store was set on fire on Wednesday.
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Cellphone video shows the fireworks burning and exploding, as a thick plume of smoke rises to the roof.
The store was evacuated and there were no reports of serious injury. Phoenix Fire Department spokesman Capt. Rob McDade said several employees were treated at the scene for respiratory issues.
“The speed with which our associates got people out of the store should be commended,” said Walmart spokesman Charles Crowson.
The incident could have escalated quickly if not for the store’s sprinkler system, which prevented the blaze from spreading to a nearby display of lighter fluid, charcoal, and propane tanks.
The cellphone video appears to show several rows of the lighter fluid stacked on shelves just feet from the fire.
Security camera footage captured appears to show a store employee remove items from an adjacent shelf.
three suspects walking away from the fireworks display as the blaze began.
Police are searching for two men and a woman.
Fire crews reported heavy smoke and water damage inside the store.
“Assessment of the losses are still being tallied,” said Crowson. “All grocery is immediately going.”
Walmart was not immediately able to respond to whether the incident would prompt the retailer to reconsider what proximity flammable goods can be stored next to one another, but did say each location was “designed differently.”
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