30 People Hurt as Major Fire Guts Sao Paulo Gym

Some 30 people were hospitalized after a major fire destroyed a gymnasium in central Sao Paulo, Brazil early Friday, firefighters said.

A spokeswoman for the fire department said the blaze was now under control but scores of residents from an adjacent 150-apartment building had to be evacuated as dense smoke spread.

Around 150 firefighters and 59 trucks rushed to the scene.

Some 30 people were overcome by smoke and treated in area hospitals.

The cause of the blaze is not yet known, the spokeswoman said.