- Explosions tore through several restaurants at 1am on Monday morning
- Nearby homes were evacuated as a safety precaution as the fire spread
- It was such a fierce blaze that a brick wall collapsed into a laneway
- More than 60 firefighters worked for an hour to control the flames
- Lygon Street will be closed city-bound for ‘about half a day’
Fires ripped through a famous Melbourne street causing more than $2 million in damages – as witnesses call it ‘suspicious.’
Explosions could be heard as the blaze tore through several restaurants in the district at 1am on Monday morning.
Nearby homes were evacuated as a safety precaution as the fire spread from the ground level of a newly renovated Japanese cafe to the second floor.
Explosions could be heard as the blaze tore through several restaurants in the district at 1am on Monday morning (pictured is a laneway next to the destroyed shops)
It was so fierce on the ground level that a brick wall collapsed into a laneway.
The fifteen people forced to abandon their homes were put up at a Travelodge Motel until it was safe for them to return.
More than 60 firefighters worked tirelessly to control the fire, which took an hour to put out, and remain stationed in the area today.
Traffic is at a standstill along Lygon Street in Carlton with neighbouring Grattan and Faraday streets also closed.
More than 60 firefighters worked tirelessly to control the fire, which took an hour to put out, and remain stationed in the area today (pictured in Carlton)
The Metropolitan Fire Brigade said Lygon Street will be closed city-bound ‘for about half the day’ (pictured are the firefighters taming the blaze)
The Metropolitan Fire Brigade said Lygon Street will be closed city-bound ‘for about half the day.’
Police have currently listed the incident as ‘suspicious.’
Authorities are still investigating what started the blaze.