A four-alarm fire in San Francisco’s West Portal neighborhood on Friday caused more than $7 million in damage to three buildings, a fire department spokeswoman said Tuesday.
Investigators believe the fire, which was reported around 4:40 a.m., started in a building at 9 and 15 West Portal Ave. that contained the Vin Debut wine shop and Warren Orthodontics office, fire spokeswoman Mindy Talmadge said.
The flames then spread to the Squat and Gobble Cafe and Crepery at 1 West Portal Ave. and a building that contains 819 and 821 Ulloa St.
The fire was not officially declared under control until 3:08 p.m. because there were numerous hot spots in the buildings, Talmadge said.
The blaze caused about $1.1 million in damage to the building containing the wine bar and orthodontics office, and destroyed $3.5 million in property inside the building, according to Talmadge.
The Squat and Gobble restaurant sustained about $900,000 in structural damage, and $1 million in contents was destroyed.
The Ulloa Street building, which contains two ground-floor businesses and upstairs residential units, sustained $750,000 in structural damage and $100,000 in damage to its contents, Talmadge said.
Two firefighters were injured battling the blaze. One had a laceration and the other suffered smoke inhalation and was transported to a hospital, she said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but the blaze does not appear to be suspicious, Talmadge said.
The fire shut down light-rail service for several hours at San Francisco Municipal Railway’s nearby West Portal station. Bus shuttles were put in place until normal service resumed around 10 a.m.
Dan McMenamin, Bay City News
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