Fire Rips Through San Diego Building

In the early morning of Tuesday, June 5 a little before 2:00 AM, fire raged through a building in the northwest part of San Diego. The building on fire was a hotel under construction, adjacent to an occupied hotel and apartment complex.

The well advanced fire burned nearby cars and scorched the buildings next to it. Hundreds of hotel and apartment residents had to be evacuated as fire command called for a third alarm. The fire radiated heat so intense it melted anything plastic or glass within hundreds of feet. It got hot enough to trigger automatic sprinklers in the occupied hotel next door.

Around eighty firefighters and thirteen engines from four districts were called to the scene and brought the fire under control within a few hours. Fire crews spent the day putting out hot-spots and overhauling damaged areas. Investigators are on the scene trying to determine the cause. No serious injuries or deaths were reported, but the damage is estimated in the tens of millions. The Red Cross is assisting the people who lost their belongings and vehicles.