Story highlights A fire suppression system goes awry at a San Jose airport hangar

The result: A sea of white foam that could not be contained

(CNN) In a scene reminiscent of a laundry-gone-wrong episode of a classic TV sitcom, a giant -- really, really giant -- blob of foam filled a 60-foot-high airport hangar before spilling into nearby streets at San Jose International Airport in Santa Clara, California.

Thousands of gallons of fire retardant were emitted Friday in a malfunction of a fire suppression system at the private hangar, officials said.

The retardant went on its bubbly rampage at about 11 a.m. (2 p.m. ET), said Patrick Sniffen, vice president of marketing for Signature Flight Support, which operates the building.

"Something triggered the (fire alarm) system to go off," said Capt. Mitch Matlow of the San Jose Fire Department, which responded to the scene. "As far as I know, there never was a fire, there never was a fuel leak. But no one can go inside the building (to investigate) because the foam is still inside the building."

The foam-filled facility is on the opposite side of the airport from the terminals, airport spokeswoman Rosemary Barnes said, "so there is no impact to flight operations."

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