Fire officials in Northern California report that malfunctioning water safety systems severely complicated their response to a devastating warehouse fire that consumed a massive medical supply facility.
The enormous blaze destroyed a 1 million-square-foot facility in Tracy, California, located approximately 55 miles east of San Francisco. The warehouse, operated by Medline, served as a distribution center for medical supplies including latex gloves, masks, surgical instruments and other equipment used by regional hospitals.
Dense black smoke continued rising from the location on Friday as fire crews worked to extinguish remaining hot spots.
Fire officials report they have not yet determined what caused the water system malfunction during Thursday’s fire, though the problem appears to have originated with the building’s internal systems rather than municipal water supply. The fire started around 1 p.m. Thursday, and responding crews discovered the structure’s sprinkler system was not functioning while on-site hydrants had insufficient water pressure, according to Tracy Deputy Fire Chief Brian Bagley. He reported that a fire official found minimal to no water flow through either system.
Fire crews had to resort to connecting with municipal hydrants as an alternative. The structure became completely engulfed within 40 minutes, Bagley reported.
“We did a defensive approach at that point,” he said.
Workers had evacuated the building and no injuries occurred.
Flying embers from the fire ignited two grass fires and caused pallets and several large trucks at a neighboring FedEx location to catch fire. Fire crews successfully extinguished those blazes.
During overnight hours, crews battled additional fires that erupted in trailers containing supplies.
Bagley stated that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will assist in determining what caused the fire, though officials expect they won’t be able to enter the warehouse for several more days. He noted that an external company had tested the sprinkler system in January without discovering any problems.
The destroyed warehouse sits within a large industrial complex that also contains distribution and fulfillment facilities for Amazon, Home Depot and FedEx.
No residential evacuations were necessary. While Bagley advised residents in the vicinity to remain inside, he indicated that air quality testing had not revealed any “grave concerns.”
