Sixteen Hollister residents were displaced from their homes
Monday afternoon when a fire of unknown origin ripped through the
Hollister Plaza apartment complex on Hillcrest Road, according to
firefighters.
Hollister – Sixteen Hollister residents were displaced from their homes Monday afternoon when a fire of unknown origin ripped through the Hollister Plaza apartment complex on Hillcrest Road, according to firefighters.
“When we arrived, the first apartment was fully engulfed,” said Hollister Fire Chief Bill Garringer, who was unable to determine the cause of the fire by press time Monday. “We were able to keep the fire from spreading to the adjacent four.”
While firefighters sorted through the aftermath of the blaze – which crews extinguished in less than 15 minutes and injured none – the rest of the complex took on the appearance of a surreal Halloween block party. Children played near fire trucks, chasing each other in Cinderella and Superman costumes while their parents talked quietly in small groups, keeping one eye on their kids and another on the damaged apartments.
According to Susie Macias, a resident at Hollister Plaza apartments, neighbors noticed smoke coming from apartment 70, in the very back of the complex, around 2:30pm – shortly after the couple living there went to work in Gilroy.
“I went outside and saw thick flames,” resident Rosa Calderon said through an interpreter. “I was scared, and then I ran and called the manager.”
Calderon lives in Apt. 67, three doors away from the blaze. She is one of the 16 residents, including several children, forced to spend Halloween in the care of the American Red Cross. While her apartment was untouched by the fire, the power source for the building was damaged by the blaze.
“I was able to go back and get a few things from my apartment,” said Calderon. “But I don’t know when I’ll be able to go back for good. It makes me nervous.”
While the fire was put out quickly, Garringer said he expected his crew would need an additional two or three hours to extinguish hot spots in the building and begin investigating the cause of the fire.
According to the Red Cross, a family of five lives in the apartment where the fire originated. As of press time, Hollister Plaza management was unable to release the name of the family, as they had not been contacted or made aware of the fire. Officials were also unable to determine the monetary damage caused by the blaze.
The Red Cross is providing relief to five families from the Hollister Plaza complex, including food, clothing and shelter for those hit hardest. Displaced children have also received hand-made blankets and teddy bears through a local organization called Project Linus, providing some measure of relief on what was supposed to be a fun night of trick-or-treating.
“I can’t remember a time when we’ve been this busy,” Red Cross Executive Director Paula Herrera stated in a press release. “We are clinging to the hope that the community will step forward to help us help these families.”
The Hillcrest fire makes three in a series of Halloween fires within the boundaries of the newly-merged San Benito-Monterey County chapter of the Red Cross. The first forced a family of four from their mobile home in Castroville, and a family of seven in Soledad also lost their
mobile home to a fire Monday morning.
Interested residents can make a donation to the local disaster relief fund by calling (831) 636-2100 or online at www.montereyarc.org
