Coral Gables

2 cars erupt in flames outside Coral Gables home after power line falls on them

The fire broke out at a home in the 1800 block of Ferdinand Street

NBC Universal, Inc.

Two cars erupted in flames outside a Coral Gables home Friday morning after a power line fell on them, officials said.

The incident happened in the driveway of a home in the 1800 block of Ferdinand Street.

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Aerial footage from Chopper 6 showed the two vehicles up in flames and fire rescue crews working to extinguish the blaze.

Crews responded after two cars somehow caught fire outside a home in Coral gables Friday morning.

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The footage showed both cars apparently destroyed after the flames were extinguished.

Crews at the scene said it appeared a power line somehow fell on the cars and sparked the blaze.

The woman who lives in the home said her husband woke up to get an aspirin and saw the fire burning outside in their driveway.

"It was very scary," said the woman, who didn't want to be identified. "At least the house didn't burn down."

Neighbors along the street were evacuated form their homes as crews battled the flames. Because of the live wire, firefighters weren't able to immediately battle the flames, and the fire nearly spread to the house, officials said.

"Our crews made a quick decision to shut down the FPL grid in order to save the house because at that time the fire was extending into the house," Fire Rescue Lt. Ishmael Roig said.

No injuries were reported but the incident initially knocked out power to around 1,400 customers in the area.

It's unknown what caused the power lines to fall but Florida Power & Light officials said the cause is under investigation.

“FPL is responding safely and quickly to restore power to customers following a downed powerline in Coral Gables. FPL restored power within an hour to more than half of the customers affected. No one was injured," the company said in a statement. "The cause of the downed powerline is under investigation.”

The homeowners said it's not the first time a power line has fallen there. Just over a year ago, a power line fell near the same spot, causing less damage.

"This is ridiculous, I mean, it's like a third world," the woman said.

Check back with NBC6 for updates.

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