A fire on what was once a Christmas tree farm hit home Wednesday for firefighter Allan Walden, who has fought fires in San Carlos and Belmont for nearly four decades.
This time, it was his two-story farmhouse in San Gregorio that went up in flames.
Walden started to fight the flames with a fire extinguisher, but it took about 30 firefighters from three agencies several hours to put the fire out. The fire had spread to two acres of Walden's property and the house burned down.
Walden has been working for the Belmont Fire Department longer than any other firefighter, said Battalion Chief Dan Belville.
The Department of Forestry is still investigating how the fire started. "I think he was just shocked to see the tables turned," Belville said. "We always see other people's tragedies and try to help out. This was his tragedy unfolding before him."
