At 7:30 p.m., after the fire had been fought for more than two hours, dark puffs of acrid smoke continued to stream from the top of The Carpet Shop, at 1530 Whiskey Road. Firefighters contained the blaze, which had threatened to spread next door to Dunagan's Sewing and Vacuum.

Two fire trucks with ladders extended above both buildings continued to spray water on both. They poured water on the carpet store because of chemical-coated carpets that stayed ignited and they doused Dunagan's to prevent it from catching fire, said Sgt. David Turno of the Aiken Department of Public Safety.

On the ground, firefighters used two hoses to blast bright orange flames just inside the carpet store's front doors. At one point, Sgt. Turno said, four firefighters were inside the store when the roof caved in, sending a wave of flame over them.

They weren't hurt, Sgt. Turno said.

Authorities arrived at the scene about 5 p.m. to respond to calls about a power surge at Dunagan's. A power line had snapped in front of the store, dropping onto an overhead streetlight and sending sparks shooting into the air, said James Stone, who works at Southside Performance and Automotive, next door to Dunagan's.

Aiken County firefighters hose down a fire at The Carpet Shop on Whiskey Road. The fire destroyed the business, but crews were able to prevent the fire from spreading to nearby Dunagan's Sewing and Vacuum. MICHAEL HOLAHAN/STAFF

About 15 minutes later, he said, there was an explosion.

Sgt. Turno said a fire crew arrived soon after but saw no exterior flames. The fire was burning inside the building, he said.

A gas line at the rear of the carpet store continued to leak as firefighters battled the blaze. Shortly before 8 p.m., a crew from South Carolina Electric and Gas prepared to cut power and gas connections.

About a quarter-mile stretch of Whiskey Road, Aiken's busiest thoroughfare, was closed between downtown Aiken and Silver Bluff Road.

Looking on in the pouring rain was Donna Farr, who owns The Carpet Shop in Aiken and two other stores by that name in Augusta.

"We hate it," she said. "At this point, we're just as puzzled as everyone else."

The store was closed Sunday, and no one was reported injured.

Ms. Farr said she did not have a damage estimate, saying only that it was "too much." She said she had remodeled the store twice since buying it 13 years ago, most recently this past year.

The building, which used to be a Sears store, was insured, she said.

Reach Josh Gelinas at (803) 279-6895 or josh.gelinas@augustachronicle.com.