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3 weeks ago
24
The home of Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was heavily damaged on Thursday morning by a massive fire, officials have said. There were no immediate reports of any injuries and Spoelstra was not home when the fire started.
Miami-Dade County fire officials said the blaze was reported around 4.30am. Spoelstra and the Heat played in Denver on Wednesday night and their charter flight back to Miami did not land until 5.11am.
Spoelstra arrived at the home shortly after the plane landed, with several fire crews working to contain the blaze. Video showed him pacing as he watched crews fighting the flames. Smoke was still rising over the property more than three hours after the first fire trucks arrived, but officials said the blaze had been contained.
Fire officials said more than 20 units responded to the fire, fighting it on the ground and in the air. The fire did not spread to any neighboring properties.
“Miami-Dade Fire Rescue responded with over 20 units – including a hazardous materials response – to combat this fire,” Miami-Dade battalion chief Victoria Byrd said.
“We found fire that was as tall as the trees. Our units came in and did an excellent job ... due to the privacy wall and a lot of the tree cover, it was very difficult to access, with only one point of entry. The men and women from Miami-Dade Fire Rescue were able to extinguish this fire and do the best job they could.”
Property records show Spoelstra bought the five-bedroom, six-bathroom home in December 2023 for $6.6m. Local TV reports said he had been renovating the property for a year, and the work had recently been completed.
Spoelstra has been Heat’s coach since 2008 and led the team to the NBA championship in 2012 and 2013.
