Fire Briefly Threatens Air Conditioning In Downtown Buildings

A mid-summer meltdown in downtown Oklahoma City was adverted Monday morning thanks to quick responding firefighters.

They were alerted just before 2 a.m. of a fire in the Veolia Energy building on E.K. Gaylord Boulevard between Main and Sheridan. Reports of smoke filling the building were confirmed by authorities on scene.

Firefighters quickly discovered the source of the fire was a compressor on top of a chiller unit.

The fire could have disrupted the cool and comfort of thousands working in downtown.

The Veolia Energy building controls the heating and cooling systems of at least 25 customers in downtown including federal and county offices, hotels and several prestigious towers in the area, according to Veolia's website.

A spokesman for Veolia Energy told firefighters that the fire should not disrupt cooling services for those offices and buildings it services.