A summer camp for children in Maryland caught fire on Wednesday, local authorities said, with no reported children or staff members injured.
More than 100 firefighters responded to douse the flames that almost completely engulfed the building where the camp dining room was located, where the fire originated, the Frederick County Fire Department said in a statement.
[Raises to 53 dead migrants. The truck passed border controls en route through Texas undetected]
Fortunately,
the building was empty when the fire broke out
, said camp director Marty Rochlin.
Firefighters put out a fire at a children's camp in Maryland on June 29, 2022.WRC / WRC
"It's a building most of us grew up in," Rochlin said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.
“Fortunately, it's just a building.
The camp can continue, because the camp is the people.
And we will come back better with whatever the plan is for 2023 and beyond.”
A video published by the WBAL station, affiliate of our sister network NBC News, shows the immensity of the flames that devoured the compound and the enormous column of black smoke that was released, visible for miles around.
[A mother who lost her 2 children tells devastated that "they were anxious to travel"]
Images taken from the station's helicopter also showed the charred and smoldering remains of the camp's mess hall.
It is still unknown what caused the fire, which took firefighters more than three hours to put out.
Camp Airy is a camp for Jewish boys ages 7-17 that was founded in 1920. Camp Louis is the sister camp for girls located in the same area.
The Washington Area Jewish Federation wrote on Twitter that they were relieved that everyone was safe and said they would help rebuild the camp.