CHICAGO — Part of the Pink Line was shut down Saturday following a four-alarm fire at a Pilsen warehouse that created plumes of smoke that could be seen for miles.
Service resumed late Saturday night.
Firefighters requested the "L" to be shut down after flames and smoke from a fire at a three-story warehouse on the 2400 block of West 21st Street neared the tracks Saturday afternoon. The train is shut down from Polk and Central Park. Trains are operating only between 54th/Cermak and Central Park and 18th Street and the Loop. Shuttle buses are available for passengers traveling between 54th/Cermak and Polk, the CTA said.
The CTA recommends using the #21 Cermak bus for alternate service between 54th/Cermak and Polk.
The fire, which began about 1:30 p.m., was struck out just before 4 p.m., fire officials said.
Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford said firefighters had not been able to enter the warehouse during the blaze, and were not sure what it contained. The south wall of the warehouse has collapsed, littering 21st Street with bricks.
Langford said five ambulances were dispatched to the scene, but no injuries were reported.