Fire damages two homes in Merced, cause under investigation, says Merced Fire Department
No injuries were reported Friday afternoon in a fire that caused significant damage to two homes in Merced, according to Merced Fire Department officials.
Firefighters responded to the blaze in the 3000 block of De Anza Court near Buena Vista Drive at 12:15 p.m., according to Merced Fire Battalion Chief Mickey Brunelli.
When crews arrived at the scene they reported a confirmed structure fire with heavy smoke and fire showing, threatening nearby homes. While units were on the way there also were reports of possible explosions in the area.
The cause of the explosions is unknown at this time, according to Brunelli.
“Fire personnel initiated an immediate fire attack on the initial structure,” Brunelli said. “Unfortunately they were unable to keep the fire from spreading to the second structure so we had to request additional resources from our county partners to come in and assist with that.”
“At this time I have two residential structures that sustained major damage as a result of the fire,” Brunelli added. “There are no injuries reported. The cause is under investigation.”
There were no people home in the initial home that caught fire. There was one person at home sleeping in the second home. That person was able to be removed safely.
According to Brunelli, they are helping two people who are displaced due to the fire.
There was a lot of debris that caught fire in front of the initial home.
“Our understanding, talking to neighbors in the area, is that that house is going through some sort of change in ownership at this time, so we’re unclear as to whether folks are moving out or whether there’s material that has been discarded at the residence as a result of that change in ownership,” Brunelli said.
Brunelli described the blaze as an “all-hands fire” with every available fire engine and ladder truck responding to the incident.
Five Merced Fire Department engines and one ladder truck arrived on the scene, along with 19 fire personnel. The Merced County Fire Department also assisted with two fire engines.
