Arson investigation at Orlando night club

ORLANDO, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Workers on Thursday scrambled to make repairs at the Gilt night club off Colonial Drive in Orlando.   They were cleaning up before the crowds arrived. 

Orlando firefighters responded to an automatic fire alarm after 2 a.m. early Thursday morning and found a fire burning inside a plastic tub outside the club.  They put that out but then saw smoke inside so they went in to investigate.  "As they were going in, about six to eight feet, they noticed there was a propane tank that was dispensing gas," said Ashley Papagni, spokesperson for the Orlando Fire Department.   Arson investigators believe someone put that 20-pound propane tank inside on purpose, to fuel a fire.  "That alerted them and immediately took quick action to shut off that tank, pull it out, in the event that it could be catastrophic."

Papagni says the firefighter’s training helped them to act to prevent any of them from getting hurt in a potential explosion.  "The Orlando Fire Department's Arson and Bomb Squad will collect all the evidence they need, and then, we will conduct any type of interviews or anything that would contribute to getting to the bottom of this case."

The general manager of the night club told FOX 35 that he believes this is a case of deliberate vandalism, and he hopes the club’s security camera videos will be useful in the case.