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Smoke Condition Forces Evacuation at EWR Terminal

Newark

Port Authority Police evacuated about 100 people from Terminal B after a small fire caused a smoke condition that lingered through the halls the airport.

Firefighters were called to the terminal at around 1 a.m. on reports of a fire with heavy smoke conditions coming from an unidentified location.

Crews arriving to the scene pinpointed the blaze to the lower level of Terminal B in a utilities closet inside a boiler room where the sprinkler system reportedly knocked down the flames causing rising smoke to reach the Terminal B section of the airport according to reports. Crews left the airport but returned a short time later after flames reignited inside the ceiling of the utilities room causing officials to call a second alarm.

A portion of the ceiling had to be removed to get to the flames according to Port Authority officials.

Firefighters used equipment to ventilate the terminal for several hours.

A search of the area for victims and/or possible extensions came up empty.

The cause of the blaze is under investigation.

1,000