Fire breaks out at South Beach hotel; no injuries

Daniele Perrone was relaxing in his South Beach hotel Wednesday evening when he caught a strong whiff of smoke.

Just after 6 p.m., he ran outside to find a hotel across Collins Avenue was on fire.

“I saw big, heavy smoke coming out,” said the 30-year-old, who is in Miami Beach on vacation from Italy. “It was black.”

Large plumes rose up from the nine-room Lily Leon Hotel at 835 Collins Ave. after a fire broke out and scorched a storage room.

All guests evacuated, and no one was injured in the blaze.

“It was a fairly significant fire,” said Capt. Javier Otero, of the Miami Beach Fire Department. “But we were able to contain it quickly.”

Authorities shut down Collins Avenue between Eighth and 10th streets as investigators tried to determine what caused the flames. Officials didn't have an estimate for the cost of the damage Wednesday night.

This story was originally published September 16, 2015 at 10:23 PM with the headline "Fire breaks out at South Beach hotel; no injuries."