Solomon?s Fine Jewellers store on Front Street will re-open this morning after quick work by firefighters in breaking through heavy security prevented what is presumed to be an electrical fire from gutting the store and neighbouring businesses.

Fire Service spokesman Lt. Dana Lovell yesterday said firefighters had a hard time getting into the store which was compared to ?Fort Knox?.

He said they broke the window of the front display area when they first arrived to put the flames out and then forced their way in by breaking the metal security gate as well as the store?s front door.

One firefighter, Patrick Furbert, received some attention on the scene for glass fragments which had become lodged in his right shoulder when the door was broken.

Lt. Lovell said he was just as proud of the city as most, but with its old, rustic buildings built so closely together, it could have been worse.

Lt. Lovell said the fact that the fire service was so close to the scene when the call came through probably prevented the fire spreading to neighbouring buildings.

He said they had responded to a fire alarm at the Washington Mall and were less than two minutes from the scene.

An eye witness who was walking past at the time the blaze was first noticed said quick thinking by some passing locals probably prevented a larger tragedy as they called 911 from their mobile phones.

The tourist from York in Pennsylvania who simply wanted to be known as ?Diane?, said she and her husband had arrived in Bermuda on Saturday morning and were walking through Hamilton in search of dinner.

She said they were walking along Front Street ?window shopping? at about 8.15 p.m. when they passed Solomon?s and noticed flames in the left front display window. She said some locals immediately called the Bermuda Fire Service.

?I?m amazed at how quickly they got the situation under control,? she said.

She also applauded the actions of a local Police officer on the scene who ?politely? asked pedestrians to keep moving past.

?You always hear about how quickly a fire spreads, but you don?t realise until you see it first hand,? she said.

She said there was just a small flame in the front window, but by the time the fire fighters had broken the window the fire had grown in size.

She said firefighters then started cutting the metal security gates to gain access and smoke started pouring out of the front of the shop.

A jeweller from E.R Aubrey, Tom Martin had been dropping friends off at the ferry terminal by boat when he saw the smoke. ?I just thought, oh no, not another disaster,? he said.

He called the stores? general manager, Kelly Cohen, who arrived several minutes later and opened the store for smoke to escape.

Nicole Lopes from BIC, located in the Somers Building next door to Solomon?s, was on the scene some 20 minutes after the fire was first reported and watched anxiously as fire fighters entered ensure the fire had not spread to neighbouring offices. She had been joined by a handful of onlookers, mostly tourists and employees of the Harbourfront Restaurant who had evacuated the building shortly before the fire truck arrived.

The 911 calls were made before the fire alarm was even triggered at 8.20 p.m. ? something which Solomon?s owners believe not only played a part in saving their store, but also buildings on either side.

Store manager and co-owner, Allan Porter was at the store yesterday and said they were ?very, very lucky?, adding: ?Technically the whole block could have gone up in flames.?

Mr. Porter said the power came on at 8.15 p.m. on Saturday night and according to the alarm company, the fire alarm was triggered at 8.20 p.m.

He said it appeared a power surge somehow caused the wall sockets to spark and apparently started the fire in the front left display window.

A puzzled Mr. Porter said he did not understand how it could have happened as nothing had been left plugged in, or turned on.

Mr. Porter said he was just thankful for those passing by who had seen the flames and called the fire service. ?It could have been so much worse,? he said.

He said staff were cleaning as much of the store as they could, adding that most of the jewellery from the destroyed display area had been salvaged.

However, the smoke damage caused to the rest of the shop was quite significant.

?We only painted the store three weeks ago. Now we?ll have to paint it again and replace all the carpets and the ceiling in the main store area,? he said.

Despite the setback, Mr. Porter said Solomon?s would be open for business today.

The shop, located across from the Bermuda Visitors Centre, has been a frequent winner of ?Best of Bermuda? awards and will celebrate its 30th anniversary in December this year.