The owner of a Miami auto shop that was destroyed by fire a month ago said firefighters could have saved his building, but they lacked the water to do so.
Ron Elyakim, owner of BMA Auto, said he has the pictures to back up his claim.
"The problem is they were here, but they didn't have water," Elyakim said.
Elyakim showed NBC 6 a series of photos that he shot on his cell phone four minutes after city records show that firefighters arrived at the scene.
"You can see the firetrucks," he said.
BMA Auto was engulfed by flames on Feb. 5 in a huge fire that forced officials to close Biscayne Boulevard for several hours.
The timestamps on Elyakim's photos show that for nine minutes after firefighters arrived, no water was getting onto the fire.
The photos show that lines from the fire hydrant to the firetruck appear full, but hoses from the truck to firefighters are flat.
"You can see the lines going to it are flat," Elyakim said. "Three firefighters ready to go and the line's still flat."
Elyakim and workers at the shop said firefighters were frustrated.
"I heard, 'Gimme water. Gimme water,'" said Danny Nagar, the manager of BMA Auto. "You can see them like, one to another, 'What's going on?'"
Nagar and Elyakim think crucial minutes were lost. A photo taken at 3:08 p.m. shows that the fire appeared to be limited to a single bay -- a metal shed in the back.
"This is repairable, just demolish this little room," Elyakim said.
But Elyakim claims lack of water let the flames get into the main part of his shop. At 3:10 p.m., a photo shows fire creeping into the shop.
Not until four minutes later at 3:14 p.m. was water finally coming from the hoses, according to the photos taken by Elyakim.
It took firefighters nearly 40 more minutes to bring the blaze under control.
"If their equipment had been working properly, I would still be in business," Elyakim said.
NBC 6 asked for an interview with Miami Fire Department Chief Shorty Bryson, but he was unavailable. A representative said a written statement is forthcoming.
NBC 6 also requested the 911 call made from BMA Auto on Feb. 5, but officials said they are being copied and are not currently available.
When Elyakim first raised his protests at the scene, fire spokesman Ignatius Carroll said, "That truck was only out of water for a few seconds before they were able to reconnect."
Elyakim said he feels fire officials have not mounted a sufficient investigation.
"There definitely needs to be an investigation of what happened," he said.
But fire officials said Elyakim hasn't come forward to show them the photos.
Meanwhile, Elyakim said he can't rebuild on Biscayne Boulevard but he hopes to open a new shop nearby soon.
"Hopefully in a month or so we'll be up and running," he said.
