21 Injured In Suspicious Kings Plaza Mall Fire, Officials Say

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK --- Eighteen firefighters and three civilians were injured Monday morning when a Brooklyn shopping mall erupted in flames that police have since deemed suspicious, officials said.

Multiple cars burst into flames inside the parking lot of Kings Plaza Shopping Center at 5100 Kings Plaza at about 8:30 a.m., according to the FDNY.

"I’m right by kings plaza and it’s literally on fire," wrote Twitter user Kells. "I hear explosions and stuff it’s insane."

Twenty-one people received non-life threatening injuries in the seven-alarm fire that spread across two stories of the mall's garage and sent black smoke billowing into the sky, according to the FDNY.

Brooklyn: Box 3073 at Kings Plaza Mall, FDNY using all hands for multiple cars on fire inside the parking lot. pic.twitter.com/kBmRkUKIym
— NYC Scanner (@NYScanner) September 17, 2018

The New York City Office of Emergency Management warned residents to close their windows to avoid smoke, and expect traffic delays near Kings County Plaza and East 52nd Street.

Update: Police have ruled the fire to be suspicious and released a photo Monday afternoon of a person of interest seen leaving the garage whom they would like to question.

Anyone with information about this man's whereabouts is asked to contact the NYPD.

Photos courtesy of NUFF/Twitter, FDNY/Twitter