CASTRO VALLEY — A three-alarm fire early Thursday destroyed a public market housing several businesses, fire officials said.
The fire in the 18900 block of Lake Chabot Road ripped through the Lake Chabot Public Market about 2:30 a.m., according to Alameda County Division Chief Cory Rutherglen. It eventually took about 50 firefighters to bring it under control around 4 a.m.
There were no reported injuries.The fire smoke did affect the community; Chabot Elementary School staff and children were told to shelter-in-place as the air cleared early Thursday. School officials later cancelled classes for the day because of the road closures in the area.
Rutherglen said crews asked for a second alarm about 2:45 a.m. about 10 minutes after arriving, then added a third alarm about 3:45 a.m. The extra alarms provided for enough crews to keep the blaze from spreading and to keep an eye on any floating embers, he said.
Crews tried to fight the blaze from the inside after arriving, but the roof began to collapse about 3:25 a.m., forcing them back outside, Rutherglen said. Fire eventually consumed the entire building.
Investigators could not immediately determine where in the building the fire started or how it began. They expected to be at the scene into the afternoon and possibly evening seeking clues while other firefighters monitor hot spots and clean up.
The market has about a half dozen small businesses, which all were destroyed. Among the businesses were multiple restaurants, a meat market and more than one coffee shop.
