Firefighters responded to the three-alarm fire at the strip mall at 5156 Moorpark Ave. at about 6 a.m. Fire Capt. Steve Alvarado said 30- to 40-foot flames were shooting through the roof.
Three businesses -- a lounge, a Chinese restaurant and a Japanese restaurant -- were engulfed in flames at one point, Alvarado said. "If you looked in those three businesses through the glass, all you saw was orange," Alvarado said.
The fire burned through the strip mall, causing smoke damage to six businesses including a hair salon, a dry cleaner, a bridal shop, a jewelry store and a bead supply store, before firefighters had controlled the flames just after 7:30 a.m., Alvarado said.
One firefighter suffered a minor shoulder injury, Alvarado said.
Damage is estimated at nearly $1 million, and the cause of the fire remains under investigation, Alvarado said.
