HOUSTON – Houston Fire Department says the devastating fire at Cornelius Nursery looks like it could be arson. The fire which happened early Sunday morning threatened nearby apartments, causing the evacuation of 30 to 40 residents. 

KHOU photo

Fire was so intense it melted nearby cars.

According to the fire department, they received reports of thick smoke coming from the nursery around 2:45 a.m.  When they arrived, heavy flames were already coming from the rear of the building where the nursery stored chemicals and insecticides, and the residences were evacuated due to potential of hazardous fumes in the area.

"We actually went in with HPD and we kicked some doors on one building that's right next to the fire building to make sure everybody was out of there," said Jack Williams of the Houston Fire Department.

The entire nursery building burned, and sources say the fire was so intense it burned the telephone poles in back and caused a transformer to explode. Cars and trucks were also on fire next door.

"I have never seen a melted car before have you?" said Leslie Nguyen, whose car was one of those that caught on fire.

The damage could have been much worse, and all residents were able to return back to their homes on Sunday.

"The car is insured so it doesn't really matter - plus we were worried people didn't get out in time yesterday. People were nice enough, there were people walking around banging on everybody's door but there were a lot of people who didn't want to leave ... thought that was crazy," said Nguyen.