This Columbia Walmart was evacuated Thursday night because of a 'suspicious fire'

An area Walmart was evacuated Thursday night by the Columbia Fire Department.

A small fire was reported at the Walmart in the 7000 block of Garners Ferry Road, according to Chief Aubrey Jenkins.

It was described as a "suspicious fire," by Jenkins, who said the CFD and Columbia Police Department will investigate the cause of the blaze.

There were no injuries reported, according to Jenkins, who described the situation as a small fire. At 9:30 p.m., Jenkins said the fire was out and the scene was under control.

There was very minor damage to the store, Jenkins reported.

Even though the fire was extinguished, there was no word if the store would reopen Thursday night because of the water that needed to be cleaned after the sprinklers were operated.

Just before 8:30 p.m., the CFD responded to calls of smoke and flames in the building. Soon after firefighters arrived the building was evacuated.

This story was originally published March 15, 2018 at 9:41 PM with the headline "This Columbia Walmart was evacuated Thursday night because of a 'suspicious fire'."