FORT WAYNE, IND. (WOWO) Fort Wayne firefighters responded to a large fire Tuesday afternoon at a storage building east of downtown, with no injuries reported.

The Fort Wayne Fire Department was dispatched around 2:15 p.m. to a building at 2613 East Washington Boulevard, near OmniSource. Assistant Fire Chief Jonathan Flickinger said the structure was being used for storage, possibly for vehicles, though ownership of the building has not yet been confirmed. Officials believe the property was being rented or leased.

Fire crews worked for several hours to contain and extinguish the blaze. Flickinger said excavation equipment was brought in to help crews access deep-seated fires inside the building, which extended the duration of operations.

A Public Safety Alert issued shortly after 3 p.m. advised residents to avoid East Washington Boulevard between the 2400 and 2800 blocks due to emergency response activity. A second alert later shut down East Washington Boulevard between South Anthony Boulevard and North Coliseum Boulevard.

Fire officials said there were no air quality concerns and no hazardous materials were believed to be involved in the fire.

At approximately 6:42 p.m., fire officials confirmed that three people were able to self-evacuate the building safely before fire crews arrived. The storage building was largely destroyed, but surrounding structures did not sustain damage.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.