Damage to
the property at 4049–51 24th St. was significant,
estimated at $700,000.Thankfully, no one was injured in
the Sept. 10 blaze.Photo by Pamela Gerard
A benefit is planned for
Thursday, Oct. 6, to help tenants displaced by a fire that
raced through their 24th Street building on Sept. 10.
The fundraiser, featuring a
raffle with prizes, will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. at the
Valley Tavern, 4054 24th St.
Proceeds will help the seven
residents, only one of whom had insurance, replace clothing,
furniture, and other belongings lost in the fire. Photographer
Randy Drevland, whose room was a charred ruin, lost
everything, including his cameras.
The blaze, which engulfed the
rear of the upper floors of the three-story building at
4049-4051 24th St., was reported at 3:49 p.m. and quickly
upgraded to two alarms. More than 60 firefighters swarmed to
the scene and had the fire out by 4:27 p.m., according to San
Francisco Fire Department spokeswoman Mindy Talmadge.
The smoky fire snarled traffic
on Noe Valley’s main street and attracted a large crowd of
onlookers, many of them snapping away with digital and
cell-phone cameras.
Damage to the wood-frame
building, which housed a Radio Shack store on the ground
floor, was estimated at $700,000. Another $250,000 in personal
property was destroyed, according to the incident report.
The Wells Fargo Bank branch next
door sustained minor smoke and water damage but opened as
usual on Monday, Sept. 12.
The fire began on the roof,
sparked by smoking materials, according to the report.
The only tenant at home when the
fire broke out, Gonzalo Alonso, 27, said he was in his room
near the front of the third-floor apartment when he smelled
smoke. Investigating, he saw “a huge cloud of smoke and big
flames coming from the back.” He said the fire was already too
advanced to try to put out by himself, so he grabbed his phone
and called 911 as he fled down the stairs.
“I feel bad for the tenants,”
said owner Diane Connell, who lives in Napa. “I’ll do
everything I can to have the damage repaired so they can move
back in. I’d like to get started on it by the beginning of
October, but I’m at the mercy of my insurance company, the
Fire Department, and the building department. It is what it
is.”
Connell said a priority would be
making the storefront watertight so the Radio Shack could
reopen. Meantime, a sign on the door directs customers to
Radio Shack outlets on Market and Mission streets.
The displaced tenants, who were
initially taken in by friends, have found places in the Castro
to stay until repairs are completed. Six have rented a house
together; the seventh has moved into an apartment.
“We’re a team now, and we
support each other,” said Christina Vo, 31, who had lived in
her second-floor apartment only since July. “I have a strong
sense we’ll always be part of each other’s lives after going
through this together.
“I do hope to return to the
house when it’s completed,” said Vo. “I love the place and the
neighborhood. But, I also know that I should keep my options
open because you never know where life will take you.”
An account—No. 3191560626—has
been opened for the residents at Wells Fargo Bank. Those who
wish to help but are unable to attend the benefit may send
contributions there. For more information, contact Catherine
Bergstrom at noevalleybenefit@gmail.comor
call 415-894-2284.
