Riley Pan ’28, Sophie O’Connor ’28, and Nora Choi ’28 had been sitting at a table in the window of Small World Coffee Shop at 1:07 p.m. on March 21, chatting about their break, when a car parked less than 10 meters away from the window caught on fire.
During the fire, Witherspoon Street was temporarily closed to all traffic between Nassau Street and Spring Street, and police prevented anyone from walking on the sidewalk in front of the cafe.
“We were just catching up on our breaks, and having a fun gossip sesh, and then Nora saw the smoke, and she was like ‘What is that?’” O’Connor told The Daily Princetonian in the back alley of Small World after they had evacuated.
Pan shared that when the group had been in Small World, “We turned around and there was smoke [outside].” According to O’Connor, they watched as the smoke and fire continued to escalate.
“[The car] was just on fire all of a sudden,” Choi added. As she spoke, sirens began to blare on Witherspoon Street.
Upon noticing the fire, Small World workers sprang into action and began evacuating the building. Five workers helped customers evacuate, directing them to the exit in the back of the building.
Small World workers who were present declined to give a comment.
There had been about 50 people in Small World at the time, including customers and staff.
“I was in Small World — there was lots of smoke [outside],” another student, Abigail Kolbe ’28 said.
In a statement to the ‘Prince,’ Captain Matthew Solovay and the Princeton Police Department (PPD) wrote that “responders found a 2007 red Acura, which had been parked in a marked stall on the west side of Witherspoon Street, with heavy smoke and active flames coming from the engine block.”
According to the statement, The Princeton Fire Department, First Aid and Rescue Squad, and Police responded to the call at about 1:10 PM.
Abigail Colby ’28 was studying at Small World when the fire broke out. She had left her bike parked outside of Small World, but was unable to retrieve it because of the sidewalk closure.
“I had to get my bike for class,” Colby, who had class at 1:30 p.m., said to the ‘Prince.’
After extinguishing the fire, the vehicle was towed from the scene. The Princeton Fire Marshal’s Office will be conducting further investigation.
Earlier this month, a similar incident occurred on Nassau Street. On March 12, Princeton police were alerted of a vehicle on fire in the parking lot of a business in the 200 block of Nassau Street, according to a press release from the PPD on March 18.
“Patrols attempted to extinguish the fire, however, it continued to grow in size and intensity,” the release stated. “The Princeton Fire Department responded to the location and was able to extinguish the blaze … The vehicle involved, a 2010 Ford Ranger, was heavily damaged by the fire and towed from the scene.”
No injuries were reported to have occurred from either incident.
Luke Grippo is a senior News writer for the ‘Prince.’ He is from South Jersey and usually covers administrative issues, including Undergraduate Student Government, the Council of the Princeton University Community, and institutional legacy.
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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