No injuries reported in fire that damaged two homes, cars in central Merced
No injuries were reported after a residential fire damaged two homes Thursday evening in the 2600 block of 1st Avenue in central Merced, not far from the intersection of 26th and G streets, according to Merced Fire Department.
The cause of the blaze remains under investigation.
Firefighters responded to the scene after the fire broke out around 9:12 p.m. and the fire was put out by 10:30 p.m.
“It started in a rear residential outbuilding, the garage,” said Merced Fire Chief Derek Parker. “It burned two vehicles and the primary residence and then it burned up the second residence.”
Residents of the homes were present at the time and were able to escape, Parker said.
Parker estimated the damage is expected to be “somewhere in the neighborhood of $400,000 to $500,000 in damage,” he added.
Nineteen Merced firefighters responded to the fire, along with three Merced County firefighters for a total of 22 personnel.
Parker added that six fire engines and one fire truck responded to the fire, with one of the engines coming from Merced County Fire. Both Merced City and Merced County fire chiefs were on scene.
