ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Fire crews were putting out hot spots after a two-alarm structure fire at a commercial building on the University of South Florida (USF) St. Petersburg campus, according to St. Petersburg Fire Rescue (SPFR).
Officials said no one was inside the Marine Sciences Building at the time of the fire and no injuries have been reported.
WATCH: 2-alarm fire erupts at commercial building on USF St. Petersburg campus: SPFR
"We confirmed that through an initial check interior, but we also secondarily confirmed that by checking the roster of all employees, there was no one inside," said District Chief Michael Lewis with St. Pete Fire Rescue.
More than 60 units from across Tampa Bay responded as fire shot out of the roof sending smoke billowing across the St. Pete skyline. Lewis said the cause of the fire is under investigation but it appears the building is a total loss.
"It’s a marine science lab basically so we have a lot of compressed gas cylinders, we were able to keep the fire from most of those," said Lewis. "We are going through and confirming all the hazardous materials that were on scene. This is going to be a very extensive process. We have confirmed through air cavalry that there is no hazard to the surrounding area."
Students say it’s strange watching a building they walk past every day being destroyed right before their eyes.
“It makes me so scared, I’m just thinking about all the professors who do research and just losing all that would be so devastating, and all the students who take classes in there," said student Lydia Shaw. "I’m personally terrified because I have classes in that building in the fall."
Shaw is a Marine Biology Major. She wonders if this fire will affect her future.
“Just thinking about all these classes being canceled, if they can relocate them, and I don’t want to transfer schools or campuses, and it just makes me nervous about my future here," said Shaw.
USF has issued the following statement:
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