Massive Fire Destroys Middle River Garage

Baltimore County firefighters responded early Saturday to a fire that destroyed a detached commercial garage in Middle River, according to local reports citing the county fire department. The blaze broke out in the 500 block of Earls Road and was reported at 1:55 a.m. on May 16. Crews arrived to find the structure fully engulfed, and the fire was brought under control by 2:40 a.m. No injuries were reported, and the cause remained under investigation. The fire involved a commercial structure rather than a residence, according to reports from NottinghamMD.com and East County Times that attributed details to the Baltimore County Fire Department. Those reports said the garage was destroyed. A Patch item carried by MSN described the blaze as a large fire that consumed a commercial garage in Middle River. ### Where did the fire happen, and what burned? The 500 block of Earls Road in Middle River was the location of the fire, according to multiple local reports citing Baltimore County fire officials. The structure was described as a detached commercial garage. Middle River is in eastern Baltimore County, and Earls Road runs through an industrial and commercial stretch near other business properties. The reports did not identify the owner of the garage or describe what was stored inside. ### How quickly did crews get it under control? Firefighters were dispatched at 1:55 a.m. and had the blaze under control by 2:40 a.m., according to NottinghamMD.com and East County Times, both citing the Baltimore County Fire Department. That timeline indicates crews contained the fire in about 45 minutes after dispatch. Upon arrival, crews found the structure fully engulfed, the same reports said. The extent of the damage was consistent with the description that the garage was destroyed. ### Were there any injuries or evacuations? No injuries were reported in connection with the fire, according to the reports citing Baltimore County fire officials. The available accounts did not mention any civilian rescues or firefighter injuries. Local reports also did not describe evacuations from neighboring properties. The public information available so far has focused on the destroyed garage, the response timeline and the ongoing investigation. ### What do investigators know about the cause? Fire investigators were on scene after the blaze, according to local reports. As of those reports, the cause had not been determined. Baltimore County’s fire department says on its public affairs and records pages that incident reports and other fire records can be requested through its records portal. The department’s fire news page is used for significant incidents and updates, though no separate county news release about the Earls Road fire was readily available in search results. ### What information is still missing? The Baltimore County Fire Department had not publicly identified a cause, damage estimate or property owner in the reports available on Thursday, May 21. The reports also did not say whether any vehicles, equipment or business inventory were inside the garage when the fire started. Public records may fill in some of those details later. Baltimore County’s records request system lists fire incident reports among the documents available to request, and investigators were still working to determine the cause after the May 16 fire.