The cause of a three-alarm fire at an auto repair shop that displaced 16 residents and damaged surrounding buildings in San Francisco’s Mission Terrace neighborhood early Tuesday morning remains under investigation, a fire spokeswoman said today.
While the exact cause of the fire remains under investigation, San Francisco fire spokeswoman Mindy Talmadge said fire investigators have determined that the blaze originated at Best Auto Care, an auto repair shop and gas station near the intersection of San Jose and Ocean avenues.
Firefighters received a report of the blaze at 12:34 a.m. Tuesday and brought it under control at 2:11 a.m., Talmadge said.
The auto repair shop, located at 2099 San Jose Ave. sustained $400,000 in damage to the property and $250,000 to its contents, Talmadge said.
An employee at the repair shop said today that he hopes the shop will be able to rebuild and reopen for business in three or four months.
Two residences in the 2000 block of San Jose Avenue behind the repair shop and a mixed-use building in the 300 block of Ocean Avenue adjacent to the repair shop were also damaged during the blaze.
The residences on San Jose Avenue sustained $250,000 in structural damage and $125,000 in damage to the building’s contents, Talmadge said.
The mixed-use building on Ocean Avenue sustained $800,000 in property damage and $200,000 in content damage, according to Talmadge.
The American Red Cross helped find shelter for the 16 people displaced by the blaze, including three children, according to Talmadge.
No injuries were reported and investigators are still working to determine how the blaze began, she said.
Hannah Albarazi, Bay City News
