11 cars damaged in UH garage fire; arson investigation is underway

Students, faculty blocked for hours from getting their vehicles, raising tensions

At least 11 vehicles were damaged by a fire in a parking garage at the University of Houston on Thursday afternoon, university officials said.

Houston firefighters were dispatched to the university around 1 p.m. after two cars were reportedly on fire in the school’s East Garage near University Drive and Texas Spur 5. The fire damaged at least nine more vehicles, and the garage was evacuated.

Of the vehicles involved in the blaze, four were completely destroyed, while the other seven had at least some damage, according to UH Executive Director of Media Relations Mike Rosen.

While firefighters extinguished the

blaze around 1:45 p.m., tensions heated outside the garage as students and faculty were blocked from getting out their undamaged vehicles. No one was allowed in or out of the garage for hours, Rosen said, as HFD arson investigators tried to determine what sparked the blaze.

UH student Steve Hoang was one of those students waiting to enter the garage. Hoang, who lives in Pasadena, was worried his car was involved in the fire, but had not received information from firefighters or the university about an hour after the fire was put out.

“There’s no way in hell this is happening,” Hoang said. “I still need my car to go to work and everything. The fact that this whole parking garage is inaccessible to anyone is a big deal. I’m getting an Uber. I’m not staying here.”

The garage holds 1,500 vehicles, university officials said, although it is unclear how many vehicles were in the garage when the fire started. The garage is typically full around 1:45 p.m. on Thursdays, officials said.

Once HFD completed its investigation into the fire, students and faculty who parked in the garage were asked to remove their vehicles so the university can bring in structural engineers to determine its integrity.

Once that test is complete, the garage will be cleaned out and reopened, hopefully by Monday, Rosen said.

In the meantime, students and faculty who normally park in the garage are allowed to park in any surface lot on UH property, Rosen said.

With fewer students on campus on Fridays and the weekends, officials believe there will be ample parking to accommodate those who normally park in the garage.

HFD spokeswoman Sheldra Brigham said one firefighter was taken to the hospital as a precautionary measure but is expected to be OK.

Robert Downen contributed to this report.

Godofredo A. Vasquez / Houston Chronicle Houston Fire Department firefighters extinguished a blaze on the third floor of the University of Houston East Parking Garage after it burned for almost an hour. Below, a Houston Police arson detective investigates the scene inside the garage where 11...

Godofredo A. Vasquez / Houston A UH Police Officer alerts students who are waiting to retrieve their vehicles on the status of the investigation while the crowd outside worries if one their vehicles was one of the 11 that was caught in the blaze that sent smoke clouds billowing into...