Oceanside CA— At approximately 08:37 hours this morning, October 27, 2016, Oceanside Engine Company 2113 was traveling along Oceanside Blvd and noticed smoke in the apartment complex located in the 2100 block of Oceanside Blvd. Crews quickly pulled into the parking lot area of the residential complex and noticed a heavy amount of smoke coming from inside the enclosed parking garage.
Immediate notifications were made, and a working fire response was sent to support the crews of Engine 2113 already on scene.
One of the parking garage doors was forced opened and crews were met with heavy fire conditions which engulfed six garage bays that were all a common parking area. With this challenge and the apartment complex which attached to the burning garage, a second alarm response was requested to support firefighting operations.
Evacuations of eight apartments were immediately ordered and Oceanside police officers assist firefighting crews to clear these exposed units and provide for residential life safety. Additional fire crews advanced hose lines to protect exposures, provide for a rapid extinguishment of the working fire and account for the evacuation of all residents occupying the apartment building.
The early notification from Oceanside Engine Company 2113 and the aggressive initial fire attack, kept the fire contained to the parking garage area, preventing it from further damaging the apartment building. The incident was brought under control in approximately 17 minutes from the first reports of smoke.
Occupants living in the apartment complex will be able to return to their homes, once SDG&E restores power to the building and ensures a safe area around the fire damaged garage.
An investigator with the Oceanside Fire Department responded to the scene in order to determine the cause and origin of the fire. While the fire appears to be centered on a storage area inside one of the garage cabinets, the exact cause is still being investigated. Damage was minimized as a result of the quick work of the first arriving fire personnel. One unoccupied vehicle parked in the garage area suffered damage and estimates are still being determined by the ongoing investigation.
Forty-five personnel including three Chiefs, four command officers with 8 Engines, 2 Trucks, 4 Medic Units and Mutual Aid provided by the Carlsbad and Vista Fire Departments.