Firefighters battle downtown commercial fire Tuesday

First responders battle commercial fire in downtown Chattanooga early Tuesday morning. Picture courtesy of CFD.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — Firefighters have been battling a commercial fire downtown for several hours.

They responded to Huff Place off E 23rd Street just after 1:00 Tuesday morning.

Engine 5 arrived on the scene and found heavy smoke billowing out of a grocery store.

They quickly launched an interior attack and primary search and no one was found inside.

Additional crews joined in the offensive operation, but the fire progressed very quickly.

Firefighters found themselves dealing with multiple ceilings and a multiple layer roof. Aerials were set up so that master streams could douse the flames and fire officials pushed to protect two other adjacent large commercial buildings.

Efforts are underway to demolish the grocery store due to its compromised structural integrity. A building inspector and Public Works are en route to the scene.

No injuries have been reported and the cause of the fire is under investigation.