WASHINGTON Three people were hospitalized after a fire at the headquarters of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, authorities said Wednesday.

The fire Tuesday forced the evacuation of the building in nearby Langley, Virginia, and a shift in operations to another location, CIA spokesman Bill Harlow said.

"Our operation center temporarily closed down, but they shifted to other operations centers of the intelligence community to help us pick up the load," Harlow said. "They started the operation again from a remote building on the compound within an hour and half of the fire first breaking out."

Two agency employees and one firefighter were hospitalized, two for smoke inhalation and one for cardiac problems, after the fire. Fifteen others were treated at the scene.

A fire department spokesman, Dan Schmidt, said the fire was accidental and caused about 100,000 dollars in damage.