Twenty-four firefighters from the Las Cruces Fire Department responded to the blaze.

Store personnel and customers used dry chemical fire extinguishers to put out the fire prior to the fire department's arrival.

Police officials said their quick actions kept the fire from spreading and becoming an extremely dangerous situation.

"It was hard to breathe," said Tony Holguin, who was inside at the time. "When you walked in, it was hard to see. A lot of people were coughing, walking out, being escorted by the police. I had asked one of the employees and she had told me that someone had started the pinatas on fire."

Firefighters used fans to clear the building of residual smoke. The store resumed normal operations within two hours.

Fire Investigator Eric Enriquez said pinatas were intentionally set on fire. Firefighters are still investigating the incident, but officials said the fire may have been set by a group of teenage boys.

Damage to property and merchandise was approximately $1,000.

There were no injuries reported.