June 19--More than 150 San Francisco firefighters battled a huge five-alarm blaze that broke out on the edge of the Bernal Heights neighborhood Saturday afternoon, closing the area's busiest street and displacing at least 42 people.
The inferno spread through as many as six buildings on the 3300 block of Mission Street, with firefighters reporting to the scene around 2:30 p.m.
Flames were shooting out of Playa Azul, a neighborhood restaurant, and the Cole Hardware store as firefighters used more than 40 pieces of apparatus to tame the blaze.
Authorities evacuated the surrounding buildings and blocked off nearby streets.
They ordered anyone within a five-block radius of the fire to shelter in place and warned others living close by to shut their windows and doors to avoid letting in heavy smoke and potentially toxic chemicals from the burning hardware store. The order was later lifted.
Chaotic scene
Meanwhile, the water poured on the fire rushed down toward 29th Street and Tiffany Avenue, forcing neighbors to use sandbags and brooms to push the foot-deep water out of their homes and businesses.
Firefighters were able to stop the fire's spread and had contained it by about 6:30 p.m., said Jonathan Baxter, a Fire Department spokesman. Baxter said firefighters would later go into the buildings to take care of any residual fire and hot spots left inside.
Authorities said Mission Street would remain closed from Valencia to 30th streets through at least Sunday morning.
The fire spread through 3300 to 3322 Mission St. and 31 to 33 29th St., leaving businesses, apartments and low-income housing charred or nearly destroyed.
The block was a chaotic scene, with hoses streaming water down through the roofs of the buildings. The rear of the Graywood Hotel, 3308 Mission St., was destroyed by the fire. Blue sky filled the space where the building had been.
Investigating cause
Two people standing outside of the buildings were treated for minor smoke inhalation, officials said.
Fire officials are investigating the cause of the blaze.
Merchants and residents by the hundreds gathered behind police tape along Mission Street. The manager of Good Frikin' Chicken set up a free table of falafel, hummus and rice, feeding the firefighters and police officers.
Joe Williams lived on the second floor of the now-charred Graywood Hotel.
Williams said he went to check out the hallway Saturday afternoon after his wife thought she had smelled burning barbecue. He walked down the second floor hallway, near the top of the stairs, to check the fuse box.
"I opened the fuse box, and smoke just poured out," he said. "I ran to get the fire extinguisher, but it was already too late."
Williams has lived at the hotel for about a year with his wife and 1-year-old son. He was one of several people in the building who were previously homeless and had been referred to the building by social service agencies.
"I just got out of being homeless, of moving from place to place, and here I am again," he said.
Williams said his family just managed to escape before the firespread.
Maria Romero lived in a studio apartment with her son at 3316 Mission St.
She was working at Duboce Park Cafe when she got a call that her apartment was on fire.
Her son, 15-year-old Kenneth Cano, was able to escape with their bulldog, Spike, after someone ran through the building warning everyone to get out, she said.
"I'm so glad I was able to get the things that are important -- my son and my dog," Romero said. "That's what I need to carry on in this life. Things happen."
The suddenly homeless residents were sent to the nearby Safeway parking lot for assistance from the Red Cross. A temporary shelter was opened at the Salvation Army on 1156 Valencia St.
Previous 5-alarm fire
Shukry Lama was working at the 3300 Club at 3300 Mission St. when the fire broke out. Lama, whose family owns the club, said there were a couple of customers and three employees in the bar watching the Giants game when they cleared out.
Saturday's fire was San Francisco's first five-alarm in almost two years. The last ripped through a building at 2632 Mission St. on Sept. 4, 2014, injuring four people.
J.K. Dineen and Kevin Schultz are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: [email protected] , [email protected] Twitter: @sfjkdineen, @kevinedschultz
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