Watsonville firefighters attack a massive fire that raged through several buildings and vehicles Wednesday morning at 30 Riverside Road. Photo by Tarmo Hannula
WATSONVILLE — A massive fire ripped through several buildings in Watsonville Wednesday morning that pumped a huge column of black and brown smoke into the sky that was visible for miles.
“I woke up to my roof on fire,” said a resident of one of the burned buildings who said her name was Heidi. “The wall was on fire, too. I grabbed the hose and tried to put it out but it wouldn’t go out — it was too big.”
Heidi stood on Riverside Road in stocking feet crying as she watched firefighters tackle the fire.
“I got out with what I’m wearing,” Heidi said as she clutched a white sweatshirt that was dusted with soot. “Everything is gone.” Heidi said she’s lived at the home for about two years. She was treated by American Medical Response paramedics at the scene for a burn to her hand.
Watsonville Battalion Chief Corey Schaefer said fire engulfed at least one outbuilding and quickly spread into a nearby two-story older home at 30 Riverside Drive.
“Access to the fire and lack of water supply were the main issues here,” Schaefer said. “We had to haul in our own water. When we first pulled in one garage was fully engulfed in flames and it was spreading to a two-story home. The fire just kept getting larger.”
Watsonville Fire was joined by Aptos/La Selva, North Monterey County, Cal Fire, and Pajaro Valley fire departments in battling the fire that started just after 9 a.m. American Medical Response, the California Highway Patrol, Watsonville Police and the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office were also on the scene. A crew from Caltrans helped with traffic control.
Riverside Drive was closed altogether in the area for several hours.
Harold Farris, who said he is part owner in the property, said numerous homeless people have lived in and around the property, a problem he described that has festered for years. Indeed, scores of makeshift living quarters and tents dotted the wooded property and heaps of disheveled belongings, numerous bicycles were strewn about the grounds. The fire charred at least three vehicles.
Schaefer said an aggressive attack by a team of six firefighters was successful in stopping the fire from spreading in the attic of the two-story home.
Farris said the one two-story home on the property, close to the fires, was an historic home built by famed architect William Weeks. He said it once stood near the corner of Marchant and Maple streets, and was moved to its present location. That building was not damaged.
The fire attack spilled well into the morning and mop-up operations lasted into the afternoon.
Schaefer said it was too early to determine the cause of the blaze.
The incident is still under investigation.
