Video: Massive Fire Hits San Fran. Construction Site

March 12, 2014
Sections of the 360-unit building collapsed as flames engulfed the structure.

March 12--SAN FRANCISCO -- A wall of flames engulfed an apartment building under construction in San Francisco's Mission Bay Tuesday afternoon, sending black smoke thousands of feet into the sky as firefighters tried to stop the inferno.

The five-alarm fire broke out just before 5 p.m. in a large, multistory apartment building on Fourth Street near China Basin Street, according to the Fire Department. Flames shot through the roof of the building and 40 feet into the air, and a wall of the structure collapsed at about 6 p.m.

By 6:30 p.m., an entire corner of the building was completely consumed by flames and scaffolding fell away. A few minutes later, however, Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White said firefighters had kept the blaze from spreading to nearby buildings.

Firefighters had worried that the heat caused by the blaze would cause the glass windows of nearby buildings to explode, and water from their hoses appeared to be having difficulty reaching the flames. People in nearby buildings were reportedly being told to evacuate.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known, and there were no immediate reports of injuries.

Hundreds of people lined up along China Basin to watch firefighters battle the flames a few blocks to the south.

Francis Zamora, a spokesman for the Office of Emergency Services, said the city had not activated its emergency operations center.

The building was a 360-unit apartment complex being developed by BRE Properties on the west side of Fourth Street. Construction began last year and was set to be completed late this year.

The huge project stands in the midst of at least four other residential construction projects on or near Fourth Street south of Mission Creek. Together, they contain nearly 900 units.

Vivian Ho and C.W. Nevius are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. E-mail: [email protected] Twitter: @VivianHo

Copyright 2014 - San Francisco Chronicle

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Photo Courtesy of Keith Addie/NJFiregroundPhotos.com
Photo 9. Positioning for maximum scrub and suppression operations are critical for the initial arriving truck company.
Photo 9. Positioning for maximum scrub and suppression operations are critical for the initial arriving truck company.
Photo 9. Positioning for maximum scrub and suppression operations are critical for the initial arriving truck company.
Photo 9. Positioning for maximum scrub and suppression operations are critical for the initial arriving truck company.
Photo 9. Positioning for maximum scrub and suppression operations are critical for the initial arriving truck company.

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