One firefighter injured as more than 160 battle huge blaze which engulfed six buildings in San Francisco and forced 100 workers to be displaced from their jobs
- One firefighter had minor injuries he suffered while fighting the blaze that started at around 6.30am near Central Freeway
- Some 160 firefighters and 60 trucks and engines took on the devastating fire
- The fire possibly started at a building supply store on 14th Street before spreading a two-block area
- It was 75 per cent contained by 9am but firefighters continued fighting to stop it from spreading
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A firefighter has been injured after crews from around San Francisco responded to a blazing fire that engulfed several buildings near a major highway on Tuesday morning.
Fire officials said that the blaze began at around 6.30am, possibly at a building supply store on 14th Street. The fire quickly grew to other buildings and was soon enveloping an area of two-blocks near 13th Street and South Van Ness Avenue.
The damage was so disastrous that it resulted in the closing of one lane of the nearby Central Freeway, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
One firefighter had minor injuries he suffered while fighting the blaze that started at around 6.30am near Central Freeway
According to Fire Chief Jeanine Nicholson, some 160 firefighters and 60 trucks and engines took on the devastating fire. The blaze left some 100 workers displaced and effected as many as six commercial buildings.
One firefighter had minor injuries he suffered while fighting the blaze. The crew member was identified as a chief who ‘got knocked in the head a little bit,’ Deputy Fire Chieg Victor Wyrsch said.
The firefighter has been hospitalized and is in ‘an abundance of caution.’
Some 160 firefighters and 60 trucks and engines took on the devastating fire
The fire is believed to have started at Bartfeld Sales, a construction supply warehouse which has been in business for almost 75 years.
Brian Bartfeld, the owner’s son, told KTVU that his father had arrived on Tuesday morning to find the building already completely in flames. He shared that his father had been the last one to close the shop, located at 140 14th Street, but everything had seemed fine on Monday.
‘The whole building is gone,’ he said.
There is a lot of flammable material inside the warehouse, including lumber, wooden palettes, cardboard boxes and building materials.
By 9am, the fire was 75 per cent contained but crews had to continue working against the fire to stop it from spreading.
‘Our members have done a terrific job out there,’ Nicholson said in a news briefing. ‘But this is why we train.’
Wrysch arrived at the time of the second alarm, and said that the building supply warehouse was ‘fully involved.’ He said that the second building went ablaze within minutes.
Six commercials structures bounded by South Van Ness, Folsom, Erie and 14th Streets were likely affected by the fire, according to department spokesman Lt. Jonathan Baxter.
A southbound lane on Highway 101 has closed after smoke and flying embers began blowing heavily onto it and the ramps of the Central Freeway, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The Sheriff’s Office was occupying one of the buildings at the time of the blaze, Wyrsch said. Most of the ammunition and equipment inside was moved by one deputy who happened to be inside at the time. Firefighters made it to the building and stopped the fire from penetrating.
Some 100 million gallons of water were used to help fight the flames, which became a ‘huge problem’ along the Erie side of the blaze. The efforts to fight the fire became difficult even more-so when a power line fell on fire equipment.
It is still unclear what started the fire but it is still under investigation.
