DETROIT (WXYZ) — Detroit fire crews were on the scene of a massive fire at the historic Maccabees Building on the campus of Wayne State University on Wednesday afternoon.
Watch Whitney Burney's video report:
While the investigation is ongoing, Wayne State officials say an air handling unit outside on the 11th floor ignited in an electrical fire. No one was injured. Officials say the fire happened on a faculty floor.
Officials say the building mostly suffered water damage, but the electrical damage has not yet been assessed. They say they will walk through the building to determine the full extent of any damage.
The building will remain closed while the damage survey is underway. Once that is complete, undamaged parts of the building will be reopened.
Video showed a massive plume of smoke coming from the building, located along Woodward Avenue just north of Warren Avenue, as well as flames coming out of windows.
See the viewer videos below:
Wayne State University sent out an alert that said the building had been evacuated because of the fire.
"I was in the library doing my English work and my mom texted me 'are you OK? Are you OK? There’s a fire going on,'" freshman student Derrik St. James said.
As of 1:58 p.m., WSU reported the fire in the building was out and contained to the 11th floor. According to the university, there are no known injuries at this time. Crews arrived at the scene within two minutes of the call coming in.
Businesses were open at the time the fire broke out. Freshman student Maria Witcher says she was in the middle of the lunch rush at Shield's Pizza, which is located on the ground floor of the Maccabee's Building.
"I had tables in here. I literally had their soup and salad in my hand. As I go to serve it, a homeless man comes and yells 'Oh, my God! There’s a fire. Your building's on fire. I hope you all know that,'" Witcher said.
Witcher says police came in shortly after and evacuated the employees.
"It was a whole bunch of smoke. It was black smoke everywhere. The building, I thought, the whole top was on fire," Witcher said as she described the fire.
Shield's Pizza and other businesses have since been given the all clear to continue business as usual. The WSU welcome center also remains open.
Woodward Avenue has reopened at Warren.
According to Historic Detroit, the 14-story building was designed by Albert Kahn and is also the former home of WXYZ, which started broadcasting from the building in 1948.
See video from the WXYZ Tower Cam below
Wayne State University purchased the building in 2002, and in an update in 2025, said that as part of campus enhancement, academic programs would be moved from the building and will instead house administrative departments.
