At 6:14 am, East Contra Costa Fire Protection District firefighters responded to a barn fire on Bethel Island on Gateway Road near N. Stone Road. Engine 94 arrived on scene and found a 30 foot by 100 foot barn fully involved along with several boats and automobiles.
Fire crews worked to preserve nearby buildings and vegetation as it took 40-minutes to get the fire under control. By 7:00 am, the fire timer was cancelled and crews were working on spot fires and refilling their water tenders as a precaution.
Engines 94, 93, 54, and 52 all responded from the District along with Engine 88 from CONFIRE. During the incident, Engine 59 (Discovery Bay) was left to cover the District along with the Sunshine Station (CALFIRE) who was moved up to Station 93 for coverage. The incident required 5-engines, 3-water tenders and 2-chief officers.
According to Chief Hugh Henderson, at this time, the fire appears to be accidental as the property owner was cutting metal with a chop saw.
What went right?
- Time of incident – with few cars on the road, it led quicker response times
- Wind – there was no wind which could have easily sent embers to nearby vegetation, buildings, and sheds. Had it been windy, more units would have been needed.
- Access – owner was quick to open gates to allow engines access as the driveway would only allow 2-engines to fit.
- According to the homeowner, the barn has not had electricity in 2-months so an electrical fire did not cause a delay for PG&E to be request before entry.
Crews were on scene for 3 hours and 52-minutes.