Dark smoke spread over Uhrichsville Tuesday night as flames tore through the former Mill Township Garage, the home to four businesses.

The building sits in the 100 block of Water Street. Many residents were able to see the devastation that started at 4:30 p.m. firsthand.

"I came from Dennison over here to see what was going on and pulled into an alley next to a laundromat," said James Meck. "I noticed Green's Auto here was completely engulfed in flames."

More than 10 fire departments came to fight the massive blaze, but they weren't all there right away. The Uhrichsville fire department had the first crew there.

"We made entry, the fire got too intense and we decided to go defensive on it," said Captain Wes Dillon. "Just a very large structure, a lot of contents inside, that's the reason it's taken so long to get the fire out."

Firefighters expect to be at the scene battling hotspots throughout the night, but while they work, residents are getting a firsthand look at the damage and the hard work their emergency responders do.

"I came up here and we see all these fire trucks and i was like what are these trucks doing," said Mickel Camp. "The next thing you know, I see all these firefighters, It's pretty amazing what these guys do for the community."

The initial call to dispatchers indicated that the fire started in the basement, but the cause of the fire is still unknown. The state fire marshal will send an investigator on Wednesday.