San Mateo Condo Fire Kills Pet Dog, Leaves 8 Homeless

SAN MATEO (CBS SF) -- A fire in a San Mateo townhouse complex left eight people homeless and killed a pet dog Thursday night, fire officials said.

The fire appeared to have started in a rear bedroom on the bottom floor of a three-story home at 2319 Ticonderoga Drive and traveled up to the roof, according to the Foster City-Belmont-San Mateo Fire Department.

Fire crews arrived at the five-unit complex about five minutes after a neighbor called in to report flames and smoke at 10:46 p.m. By that time, the four-alarm fire was already burning through the roof, according to firefighters.

Crews extinguished the bulk of the flames within 20 minutes but one home was completely destroyed and two neighboring homes sustained moderate smoke and water damage. Fire officials estimated the damage to be nearly $1 million.

The cause of the fire was under investigation. No human residents of the complex or firefighters suffered any injuries.

TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Bay City News Service contributed to this report.