NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — A busy Friday night of shopping at Macy’s in Herald Square was interrupted by blaring fire alarms. A basement fire at the flagship store forced everyone to evacuate.

And as CBS 2’s Tracee Carrasco reported, the situation could have been a lot worse.

CBS 2 obtained a cellphone video that shows confusion and chaos as shoppers were met with heavy smoke as the FDNY evacuated the building.

“I was eating, I was shopping. Everything broke loose,” shopper Biro Marius said.

“Everyone was carrying on as normal and then smoke started rising up. Twenty or 30 trucks showed up,” Frasier Smith added.

The blocks surrounding the flagship store on 34th Street were blocked off. Officials said a small mechanical fire in the basement got into the vents, and filled the iconic building with smoke. The cause of the fire was not immediately known, fire officials said.

While injuries were not reported, the evacuation and smoke made for a frightening evening for some tourists.

“I was scared. I was at the last floor, and fire rises up,” one person said.

The well-known department store occupies more than 1 million square feet of retail space.

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