A fire on the second floor of Little Switzerland on Main Street kept firefighters working late into Sunday night. No one was injured in the blaze, which Daryl George, assistant Fire Service director, said was called in at 10:13 p.m.
Monday morning, George said that Hotel Company responded to the call and, seeing the heavy black smoke upon arrival, called for additional units. Entry was made through the top floor.
"Once smoke was out, entry was made through the bottom floor, and we opened all the doors from the inside. We had a major problem on the roof and had to call a ladder unit to get on top of the roof and cut it off to get to the fire," he said.
George said the first floor boutiques, Tiffany & Co., Breitling and Little Switzerland, are expected to be closed today, as well as neighboring Diamonds International. The first two shops suffered water damage, he said.
A V.I. Water and Power Authority crew arrived and shut off all power in the immediate neighborhood, George said, while the V.I. Police Department assisted in crowd control. In all, seven units and 14 firefighters fought the blaze.
George said the arson and fire prevention units were investigating the cause of the blaze Monday.
