By Gabriel Evans
A chemical fire broke out in San José on 700 S. Daniel Way, just off Interstate 880 inside a one-story home Saturday evening.
Emergency Response Manager Isaac Olguin said San José Fire Department first responders were called to the scene when an electrical pole fell into the house.
“This was a detached garage fire that occurred in the back of the home,” Olguin said.
The smoke that engulfed the duplex was visible from I-880.
Olguin said there was no serious damage to the structure of the building, but there was heavy smoke damage and a strong odor from the fire.
“The residents living there will have to be placed somewhere else,” Olguin said.
Olguin said first responders were able to extinguish a good portion of the fire because of the way the fire was angled.
He said first responders could not tell why the electrical pole fell down at the time.
He said the homeowner used the detached garage as a storage for his business.
“He had various chemical materials, propane tanks, torching tanks, the fire took a long time to put out,” said Fire Captain Luis Alanis.
San José resident Nick Cassarino said he was working on Mission Peak when the fire broke out.
Cassarino said he was unable to tell where the fire was coming from when he saw it from a distance.
“I was at 2,600 feet, so I could see it,” Cassarino said. “I thought it was in Campbell,” he said. “Can’t tell when you’re on a mountaintop.”
Alanis said first responders received the call around 3:22 p.m. in the afternoon.
“We had approximately 17 fire trucks on the scene and about 50 personnel,”
He said no injuries were reported on the scene.
“Even the cats that were in the living area got out okay, no fatalities,” Olguin said.
