Fire forces evacuation of South Phila. toy store

Smoke and flames erupted briefly at the Toys R Us store at Third Street and Oregon Avenue yesterday afternoon, forcing its evacuation. No injuries were reported among the crowd of holiday shoppers and the store staff.

Fire crews responded to an alarm shortly after 3 p.m. and declared the situation under control 18 minutes later.

Neither a cause of the blaze nor a report on damage to the structure and merchandise was available last night. A fire dispatcher said the case had been referred to the fire marshal's office for investigation.

A recording at the store's main phone number did not mention the fire but said doors would reopen at 8 a.m. today.

- David O'Reilly