Car Fire Prompts Evacuation At Waltham Costco

WALTHAM, MA — The Costco on 2nd Avenue had to be evacuated after a car caught on fire in the garage, Tuesday afternoon. Fire officials said there were no injuries, and crews were able to make quick work of the fire. By 3 p.m. the Costco was open for business again.

Around noon a man pulled a car into the Costco garage, got out and it started smoking and ended up catching on fire, according to fire officials.

"They believe it originated in the engine compartment," said Lt. Scott Perry of the Waltham Fire Department.

Employees evacuated the garage and the shopping center building for precautionary reasons, while firefighters dealt with the fire, which generated smoke that billowed out into the parking lot.

Firefighters were able to keep the fire from spreading outside the garage.

"The sprinkler did what it needed to do and kept it at bay enough to let the firefighters do their work," said Perry. "And now there's a little bit of clean up."