OSAKA (Kyodo) -- A fire broke out on Tuesday in a building near the Tsutenkaku Tower, a popular tourist attraction in the western Japanese city of Osaka, police said.

The fire was reported at around 4:55 p.m. and burned about 500 square meters, according to the police.

A 31-year-old male employee of a game center on the building's first and second floors was hospitalized with suspected airway burns but remained conscious. He is believed to have been the only person in the game center at the time, the police said.

Thick black smoke billowed near the building as police cordoned off the area. Firefighters and police officers carrying hoses hurried back and forth while anxious tourists looked on.