Firefighters battle large fire in downtown St. Paul

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Firefighters on Tuesday battled a large fire in downtown St. Paul that engulfed a building that was under construction, causing part of the structure to collapse.

Flames were shooting high into the air and the glow could be seen for miles when firefighters arrived about 4:20 a.m., according to St. Paul Deputy Fire Chief Roy Mokosso. By 6:30 a.m., crews had most of the fire out and were concentrating on dousing hot spots, Mokosso said.

No one was inside the structure, which was “heavily involved” when crews arrived, and they were forced to fight the blaze from the outside because of the flames and heat, he said.

The building is the Seven Corners Gateway site, an apartment building and hotel complex near the Xcel Energy Center. There were no reports of injuries and there was no immediate word about the possible cause of the fire.

Several streets and interstate ramps in the vicinity were closed, the Minnesota Department of Transportation said.