Calif. Firefighters Rescue Two From Burning Home

Firefighters rescued two people from a two-story San Rafael house that was fast becoming engulfed in flames when firefighters got the call at about 5:15 a.m. Sunday.

Flames were shooting through the roof of the three-unit house at 1516 Lincoln Ave., said San Rafael fire Chief Chris Gray. There were no injuries in what Gray called a "fast moving" fire.

"Firefighters worked quickly to search the apartments and found two residents that were living in two of the three units," he said. He said the third unit was under renovation and vacant.

Some 25 firefighters worked to extinguish the blaze in under 20 minutes and continued working Sunday morning to snuff out hot spots, he said.

While the fire continues to be under investigation, Gray does not believe it was suspicious in origin. He estimated damage to the building at well over $100,000.

"It appears that some type of cooking was going on on the deck," Gray said. "We believe the fire started on the deck and then moved into the structure from there, though we are still looking at the potential area of origin. We are also trying to match the statements made by the two residents."

Despite the destruction, co-owner Roger Micheli said he was relieved the fire happened at the time that it did.

"There are places that care for kids on either side of the building," Micheli said. "So it's lucky that the fire happened so early in the morning."

Indeed, Gray said firefighters had worked hard to prevent the blaze from spreading in the densely-settled neighborhood.

"The firefighters did an outstanding job not only to contain the fire to the two units where heavy damage had already occurred, but to prevent any movement to other exposed structures," Gray said, noting that only about two feet separated the burned building from another structure to the rear. "They really had their hands full this morning."

Micheli said he and his wife purchased the building about 25 years ago, "and it was brand-new when we bought it." Both of the upstairs apartments had been rented, he said, though the single downstairs apartment was vacant, the tenant just having moved out last month.

In fact, Micheli said, a contractor had almost finished painting and making repairs to the vacant apartment.

"He came back this morning, looked up, saw the fire and his mouth just hung open," Micheli said.

The Red Cross was assisting the displaced residents.

"We help the affected families by providing three days of shelter in this case, paying for hotel rooms for the two families," said Red Cross spokeswoman Cynthia Shaw, who noted that volunteers from the organization arrived at the fire scene to help provide emotional support for those who had lost their homes. "If they need housing longer than that, we'll work with another agency to find them long-term housing. We also provide vouchers for food and clothing."

In addition, the Marin Humane Society is providing shelter for a female pit-bull mix that had been living in one of the apartments.

"In cases like these, we offer free boarding here at the shelter for 14 days," said spokeswoman Carrie Harrington. "Of course, if they needed shelter beyond that time period, we would certainly work with the family until they were in a position where they could take the animal back."

San Rafael firefighters were assisted by San Rafael police and firefighters from Kentfield and a chief officer from Ross Valley.