A fire that burned for hours in a grassy area next to a Florida airport damaged or destroyed more than 3,500 rental cars before being contained late Friday night.

The fire spanned 15 acres in an area where extra rental cars are parked to service the Southwest Florida International Airport. Witnesses saw and heard multiple small explosions, flames jumping high in the air and showers of sparks. The cars weren't occupied at the time of the fire.

At around 8 p.m. Friday, the fire spread, and the flames got higher even as two helicopters dropped water and firetrucks emptied their tanks.

There were 3,516 cars destroyed or damaged by the fire, and 3,850 were undamaged, according to Vicki Moreland, communication director for the airport.

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The cause of the fire is being investigated by the state fire marshal, she said.

The Forest Service returned to the scene Saturday morning to make sure the fire did not pick back up, according to Melinda Avni, Forest Service mitigation specialist.

The fire triggered a countywide response that included the airport fire department, South Trail Fire Department, Lehigh Acres Fire Department, Estero Fire Department, San Carlos Fire Department, Bayshore Fire Department, City of Fort Myers Fire Department, Fort Myers Beach Fire Department, Bonita Springs Fire Department, Sanibel Fire Department and Iona-McGregor Fire Department.

The airport is fully functional, and the inbound lanes of Terminal Access Road reopened at 11 p.m. Friday, Moreland said. Fire officials said the fire was completely contained and extinguished by Saturday morning.