At approximately 4:30 p.m. this afternoon, D.C. firefighters responded to the scene of a fire at The Reformer Building, located on the 1200 block of U Street NW. The massive response included a large ladder, and forced a closure of U Street during rush hour.

It took approximately 15 minutes to knock a bulk of the fire. Fire crews remained on the scene for well over an hour to ensure that the blaze did not start up again. Based on a preliminary look at the building, it appears as if the fire started on the basement floor, then spread upwards to the first floor walls and ceilings.

There were a few dozen people, gathered in front of The Islander restaurant across the street, who had evacuated the building after alarms went off. One evacuee — attending a conference being held in the building — told us that the office space had “smelled of smoke all day,” but that the group were told that the air conditioning “always smelled like that.”

The fire department has not yet reported any injuries.