2026 Milwaukee U-Haul facility fire

On January 21, 2026, a five-alarm fire broke out at a U-Haul storage facility on 1500 S. 1st St, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The initial 911 call was made at 6:30 PM. 11 crews of the Milwaukee Fire Department were sent to the Scene, and a total of 37 crews, some outside The County, responded to the fire. The extreme cold made it hard to put out the fire, and void spaces "also played a role in the difficulty".

Fire

Firefighters attempted an interior attack on the fire, but were forced to retreat when the conditions had deteriorated. Then a defensive strategy was used, attacking the flame from the outside. The fire was upgraded to a five-alarm fire at approximately 10:00 PM that night. The official radio call was:

At around 11:11 PM, the fire was extinguished, however, hot Spots were sprayed with water until around 7:30 am the following day.

Aftermath

Approximately 500 units were damaged in the fire, but the exact number "is unclear". Businesses affected were Bandit MKE, a vintage clothing store which used the facility to store their clothes when the fire broke out. Michelle Eigenberger, the co-owner, claimed that she had used up five storage units. A woman lost most of her fresh new clothing, including her sweats. She said that even her insurance will not be able to pay for the losses. A homeless woman likely lost her birth certificate, her mother's death certificate, camping equipment, and her bike.

The cause of the fire and the amount of damage remains unknown. No one was injured or killed. There was a three-alarm fire at that same building on 14 March 2016.