US News

Four-alarm fire at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta extinguished

Atlanta firefighters on the scene

Atlanta firefighters on the scene (AP)

ATLANTA — A four-alarm blaze at Tyler Perry Studios in southwest Atlanta was extinguished late Tuesday after more than 100 firefighters rushed to the scene, fire officials said.

“The fire’s out, but the cause remains under investigation,” Atlanta Fire Department captain Jolyon Bundrige told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Fire officials earlier said there was a partial collapse to the facade of a building at the sprawling 200,000 square-foot facility, but its structural integrity was not compromised, myFOXatlanta.com reported.

Though firefighters managed to put the huge fire out within an hour, they remained at the Continental Colony Parkway complex for several hours to extinguish a number of hot spots, according to the Journal-Constitution.

Investigators were at the scene trying to establish the cause of the blaze, Bundrige said, adding there were no reports of injuries.

Neighbor Dorothy Ware told the newspaper that the flames were roughly six stories high at one point.

“The building started popping. Whatever the fire was hitting was blowing up. There were plenty of sparks coming over here where we are,” Ware said.

Perry himself reportedly had been at the scene surveying the damage, but has yet to make an official statement.

It was unknown if the fire would affect any productions.

The studio, which hosted a fundraiser for President Barack Obama in March, features five sound stages, a post-production facility, a back lot, a 400-seat theater, a private screening room and designated areas for entertaining. It was moved to its current location in 2008.