House Fire Renders Union City Home Uninhabitable, Damage Upwards of $50,000

The Alameda County Fire Department has doused a one-alarm fire in Union City at a house rendered uninhabitable after extensive damage to the garage and kitchen areas, a battalion chief said.
 
County fire crews received a report at around 12:15 p.m. about a fire at a single-family home in the 4500 block of Fellows Street, Battalion Chief James Watkins said. The home's garage was fully involved in flames when engine companies arrived and the fire had spread to the kitchen, Watkins said.
 
The flames caused the roof of the garage to sag and the threat of collapse made it too dangerous for fire crews to go near there, Watkins said. At one point, embers carried over to a fence of a neighboring home but crews kept the flames from spreading.

The fire was knocked down within 15 to 20 minutes, Watkins said. There were no reported injuries, but the home's residents will not be able to return for now due to damage that will cost an estimated $40,000 to $50,000 to repair, according to Watkins.
 
The Fire Department plans to talk to the residents to see if they need temporary housing assistance from the Red Cross, Watkins said.

—By Bay City News