$1.5 million damage caused in early morning Irvine accidental fire
Sept. 18, 2015 Updated 8:25 a.m.
BY ALYSSA DURANTY / STAFF WRITER
IRVINE ? A charred series of structures remained Friday morning after a three-alarm fire damaged six homes, four garages, destroyed two cars and left 15 people homeless.
Orange County Fire Authority officials responded around midnight to an initial two-alarm structure fire in the 20 block of Silverwood, OCFA Capt. Steve Concialdi said.
By the time firefighters arrived, big flames were showing from garages and by 12:45 a.m., the fire escalated to three alarms.
Seventy-five OCFA firefighters had the fire under control by 1 a.m. but not before three condos were damaged by the flames and another three were damaged by smoke, officials said.
A total of 15 people -- 13 adults and two teens -- were displaced, Concialdi said.
Investigators later determined, after a small bulldozer removed two destroyed cars out of the four charred garages, that an equipment malfunction in one of the garages sparked the fire.
It was not initially known what kind of equipment likely caused the fire, Concialdi said.
?There was just so much damage,? Concialdi said.
Officials estimated about $1 million worth of structural damage caused and $500,000 worth of contents were destroyed.
One firefighter was hospitalized at Hoag Irvine after injuring his knee during the fire clean up.
The American Red Cross was called to assist the displaced people, but many found their own lodging, Concialdi said.
Sept. 18, 2015 Updated 8:25 a.m.
BY ALYSSA DURANTY / STAFF WRITER
IRVINE ? A charred series of structures remained Friday morning after a three-alarm fire damaged six homes, four garages, destroyed two cars and left 15 people homeless.
Orange County Fire Authority officials responded around midnight to an initial two-alarm structure fire in the 20 block of Silverwood, OCFA Capt. Steve Concialdi said.
By the time firefighters arrived, big flames were showing from garages and by 12:45 a.m., the fire escalated to three alarms.
Seventy-five OCFA firefighters had the fire under control by 1 a.m. but not before three condos were damaged by the flames and another three were damaged by smoke, officials said.
A total of 15 people -- 13 adults and two teens -- were displaced, Concialdi said.
Investigators later determined, after a small bulldozer removed two destroyed cars out of the four charred garages, that an equipment malfunction in one of the garages sparked the fire.
It was not initially known what kind of equipment likely caused the fire, Concialdi said.
?There was just so much damage,? Concialdi said.
Officials estimated about $1 million worth of structural damage caused and $500,000 worth of contents were destroyed.
One firefighter was hospitalized at Hoag Irvine after injuring his knee during the fire clean up.
The American Red Cross was called to assist the displaced people, but many found their own lodging, Concialdi said.