Two apartment buildings caught fire in West Berkeley early Tuesday morning and displaced 10 families.
A 911 call was placed at 2:51 a.m. for “a fire at a neighbor’s building” on the 2300 block of Ninth Street, according to an email from Berkeley Fire Department communication specialist Dafina Dailey.
After multiple calls were made, BFD arrived and found two apartment buildings on fire as residents from both buildings were evacuating.
Dailey said in the email the fire was brought under control at 3:36 a.m. The only injury listed was a resident’s “possible medical complaint,” but they were not taken to the hospital, according to Dailey. The Red Cross was called to assess the needs of the 10 displaced families from the fire.
Dailey added that there is currently no exact count of individuals that have been displaced, though two families have since moved back into their homes.
As of April 1, burn marks are visible in front of one of the buildings and along its balcony, as well as piles of burnt and damaged belongings and furniture. Most of the buildings’ doors and windows have been boarded up with plywood.
Taped to a door on the second floor of one of the buildings is a sign from the city of Berkeley stating: “No fire damage to interior but no electricity.” On a door in the other building, another sign has inspector comments stating: “No fire or smoke damage.”
Both the cause of the fire and damage estimates are still being determined, according to Dailey.