OCEAN CITY- For the second time in a little over a month, the Ocean City Fire Department responded to a blaze early Wednesday morning at the same downtown restaurant and brew pub building where a major fire occurred on February 10.

Around 5 a.m. on Wednesday, the Ocean City Fire Department was dispatched to 25 Philadelphia Ave., or de Lazy Lizard Brew Pub, for a reported structure fire. A passerby reported smoke and fire visible from a second-floor window of the three-and-a-half story structure.

Upon arrival, firefighters quickly located and extinguished a small fire on the second floor. Damage was limited to a small area in a second floor room. Ocean City Police closed off a portion of the southbound lanes of Philadelphia Ave. during OCFD operations, but the roadways were re-opened by mid-morning on Wednesday.

No injuries were reported. The structure is still undergoing cleanup and restoration from the previous fire at the same location back on February 10 and is currently unoccupied and closed for business. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Ocean City Fire Marshal’s Office. Anyone with information about the fire or the building is urged to call the Fire Marshal’s Office at (410) 289-8780.

The fire was the second in about five weeks at the historic structure on the corner of 1^st Street and Philadelphia Ave. during which four people were injured including two OCFD firefighters. Around 9:50 a.m. on February 10, Ocean City Communications received a call on a reported fire at de Lazy Lizard Brew Pub on the corner of 1^st Street and Philadelphia Ave. Ocean City Fire Department personnel responded and found fire coming from the building’s interior.

First arriving units were advised that people were trapped in the building, resulting in two immediate rescues. Three victims, including two members of the Ocean City Fire Department, were treated on the scene for non-life-threatening injuries and later transported to area hospitals. One additional victim was treated and released on the scene.

Thick smoke drifting from the blaze on a south wind clogged the downtown area and could be seen for miles along the approach to the resort from West Ocean City. Fire Department personnel battled the fire, which escalated to a third alarm, for over two hours.

Fire crews and equipment blocked much of the downtown area from around 2^nd Street south during the fire and access to the downtown area and the Route 50 bridge was blocked for hours. A total of 13 individuals who lived in the building were displaced. The exact cause of the February fire was not determined although it was attributed to an electrical problem.