Two fires broke out in Berkeley this weekend — one on Southside as a result of improperly discarded smoking materials and the other in South Berkeley, likely due to fireworks in the area.
On the morning of July 2 at about 5:36 a.m., the Berkeley Fire Department received a call regarding a fire in a three-story, 13-unit apartment building located at 2731 Durant Ave., according to Deputy Fire Chief Gilbert Dong. Upon arrival, the crews were met with a heavy amount of amount of smoke from the structure and requested assistance, resulting in a total of two trucks, two paramedic units, five engines and two fire chiefs on scene.
According to Dong, the fire was first spotted by a Berkeley Police Department officer who was driving in the area.
Dong said the fire was under control at about 6:26 p.m. and incurred an estimated $300,000 in structural damage and $150,000 in content damage — which includes personal belongings such as furniture — to the building.
No one was injured during the incident.
Additionally, on Monday at about 11:07 p.m., the department was dispatched to a reported fire on the roof of 3240 Ellis St. — a vacant two-story apartment building, Dong said. Eventually, the fire was extinguished largely through the use of aerial ladders, and crews were pulled out of the building’s interior once it became evident that the roof was compromised, according to Dong.
“During the course of battling the fire, the fire presented some pretty impressive flame lengths,” Dong said, which resulted in a partial collapse of the roof.
The fire was declared under control at about 12:30 a.m. and began on the roof accidentally, probably because of illegal firework activity in the area, Dong said.
According to Dong, people in at least two nearby apartment buildings were evacuated, though no one was injured during the incident.
J.D. Morris is an assistant news editor.
Comment Policy
Comments should remain on topic, concerning the article or blog post to which they are connected. Brevity is encouraged. Posting under a pseudonym is discouraged, but permitted. The Daily Cal encourages readers to voice their opinions respectfully in regard to the readers, writers and contributors of The Daily Californian. Comments are not pre-moderated, but may be removed if deemed to be in violation of this policy. Click here to read the full comment policy.