A fire that damaged a hotel in San Francisco’s Russian Hill neighborhood, injuring one person and closing nearby streets, has been completely extinguished, a fire department spokesman said Sunday morning.
The fire at the Broadway Hotel at 2048 Polk St. was reported just after 6 a.m. and was quickly extinguished, said Justin Schorr, spokesman for the San Francisco Fire Department.
Evacuated residents returned and Broadway and Polk streets reopened around 8 a.m., he said.
One person was slightly injured in the fire. The victim had not yet been taken to hospital as of early Sunday morning.
After the fire was contained, firefighters remained on scene until about 9 a.m. checking the building to make sure the fire was completely out, Schorr said.
The spokesperson said that after quickly extinguishing a fire, one of the challenges is ensuring that all embers in older buildings such as the hotel are chased away and that there is no lingering threat.
“A fire can double in size every 60 seconds,” the spokesperson said. “Our goal is to get to the scene quickly, extinguish the fire and then conduct our investigation to determine if the fire has been completely extinguished.”
Often, firefighters will extinguish the main fire and then open ceilings and floors for quite some time afterward to ensure the fire is completely extinguished, Schorr said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, Schorr said.
