A five alarm fire tore through a row of stores on Anderson Ave. in Cliffside Park on Tuesday night destroying two businesses and severely damaging several others.
According to fire officials, the ferocious blaze started at about 7:30 p.m. inside a pharmacy located at 673 Anderson Avenue and soon spread to a neighboring discount store.
Officials said as the flames advanced, firefighters were forced to fight the fire from the outside due to the rear of the roof collapsing.
Neighboring businesses and apartments were evacuated as the intensity of the flames increased.
It took over four hours to control the fire, and the cause is under investigation.
There were no injuries reported.