Oakland Hills fire in California damages 2 homes, sparks evacuations

A five-alarm brush fire in Oakland, California, sparked evacuation orders as it burned two homes on Friday.

Crews were “working aggressively to fully extinguish” the blaze in Oakland Hills, named the Keller Fire, the Oakland Fire Department said in an update on X early Saturday morning.

The fire started Friday afternoon in a home on Mountain Avenue. Wind carried flames into a grove of Eucalyptus trees, where it has grown to 15 acres, NBC Bay Area reported. The fire was 50% contained as of Saturday morning, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire).

Fire Chief Damon Covington said at a news conference Friday that crews were able to stop the forward progress of the fire but said “we still have a lot of work to do.”

Oakland fire said two homes have been impacted by flames. Dozens of other homes on Maynard, Sanford, Greenridge and Canyon Oaks were threatened by flames but not damaged.

Evacuation orders were initially issued for Campus Drive and Crystal Ridge Court, NBC Bay Area reported, before it expanded to surrounding areas. Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao said anyone being evacuated should leave immediately.

“You’re only being evacuated, it’s because we’re trying to protect the health of our citizens,” she said at Friday’s news conference.

Delane Sims’ said her home was one of the two damaged. Sims told NBC Bay Area that her husband was inside their home when the landscape caught on fire and caused a front window to explode.

“That explosion woke him up, and he was able to get out alive, and that’s what I’m grateful for. That’s what I’m most grateful for,” she said. “I thank God for that.”