Close call for Dublin homeowners after car sparks brush fire on I-580
CASTRO VALLEY, Calif. (KGO) -- A car fire on Interstate 580 in Alameda County sparked a brush fire that burned dangerously close to homes in Dublin on Monday, according to officials.
The fire was first reported around 4:20 p.m. near westbound I-580 east of Eden Canyon Road.
SKY7 was over the blaze as crews on the ground and in the air worked quickly to contain the flames that lapped up against nearby homes.
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One of those homes belonging to Chia-Mei Lee where the fire line came right up to the edge of her property.
"I'm kind of in shock. Or, I guess you could say, yeah, I'm terrified but I'm okay," Lee said.
Lee was forced to evacuate, she says after seeing the smoke and hearing noises out back, she initially thought a plane might have crashed.
"The policeman knocked on my door and said, 'hey your backyard is on fire. So you need to get out of your house,'" Lee said.
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Thanks to a quick response, fire crews were able to contain the blaze and no homes suffered serious damage.
Darren Steele lives in the next complex over and says that even though he wasn't evacuated, the experience was nerve-wracking.
"My son noticed the smoke. And we came out and in 15, 20 minutes it was engulfed," Steele said.
CAL FIRE says their job was made easier thanks to the well-maintained brush and vegetation in the area.
They say Monday's fire could have been a lot worse.
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"It's very key because when the grass hits fire it moves pretty quickly, and it can run up hills really fast," said CAL FIRE Battalion Chief, Bryan Goff.
But residents here say they're just thankful to the fire crews for a job well done.
"They did a very, very excellent job. They took care of it right at the beginning," Lee said.
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